


Unspooling

by mage_girl



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Original Trilogy, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Geeks all over, Jane Foster is salty but you know what I did there, M/M, Past Steve/Peggy, Sam has had enough of sloppy continuity, meta on the Star Wars universe, podracer making, reconnecting, resolving old hurts, star wars geeks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-21
Updated: 2017-08-21
Packaged: 2018-12-18 02:08:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 53,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11864424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mage_girl/pseuds/mage_girl
Summary: After the events of Civil War, after Bucky is free of his trigger words courtesy of Wakanda, after the rescue from the Raft, the former Avengers get together for what Steve hopes is the beginning of a reconciliation and the mending of friendships.Bucky has never seen any of the 'Star Wars' movies so they decide to watch the movies together.Cue loads of conversation, geeking out, inside jokes, and maybe, just maybe, some resolution.





	1. Prologue or In Which Steve Has a Plan

**Author's Note:**

> All thanks to my mighty betas, Librariandrew and gamerfic for their fantastic beta work. My fic would have been loads more sloppy without their in depth comments and suggestions. 
> 
> Much thanks goes to my fellow writers in the Slack channels, Chat and Sprint. Y'all had my back, read my snips, encouraged me, and cheered me on. I can't wait to meet you next summer in Chicago, right??? Y'all rock!
> 
> Thank you to my amazing artist, Whatthefoucault for their amazing artwork, that banner that gave me ALL the feels, and their ongoing communication. I'm just in awe that you not only made arts for me but also wrote your own fic. Whoa!!!
> 
> Thank you to my lovely husband who listened to snippets I read to him, who laughed at the right places, and supported me these past months. And to my sons who cheered me on as well.
> 
> And a very very special thank you goes to the Star Wars universe. Star Wars was my very first fandom. It will always be my first love. The wonder and awe I felt when I first saw 'The Empire Strikes Back' hasn't changed throughout the years. The wonder I felt seeing the newest Star Wars movies gave me a rush of nostalgia. It was a thrill to introduce Star Wars to my sons. 
> 
> And to you, reader, enjoy. May the Force Be With You. Always.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve is no stranger to coming up with something to hold everything together.
> 
> The stakes are much higher this time.

After everything was said and done, Steve needed something to distract him and Bucky. It wasn’t enough that Bucky was exonerated of all charges and that Tony was making small overtures towards rebuilding a bridge they’d torched together.. It was that bone deep exhaustion that had Steve staring out the window and losing time until Sam or Natasha would put a hand on his shoulder to rouse him.

Scott had gone back to his daughter after they came back home from Wakanda. He had bought gifts in the marketplace for her and he needed to reconnect with her. Steve feared he’d drop off the radar completely But after two days passed, Steve received a text message from Scott asking if he would give him the directions to that diner they’d talked about while resting in exile.

Clint had hightailed it back to the farm. He needed to see his wife and his kids and needed his space as well. Steve understood; he wasn’t sure if Natasha and Clint could reconcile after everything that happened but he wasn’t going to place bets, either. Natasha still wore her arrow necklace and Clint checked in with Steve after a couple of weeks’ worth of silence. He asked how Natasha was, and when Steve gently pointed out he could contact her himself, Clint had demurred, saying he needed more time.

Wanda was again living at Avengers Tower but she’d had a closed meeting with Tony and Vision. When the door opened again, Tony strode out, his eyes wet, and disappeared into his workshop for three days. Vision ghosted around the Tower for a week before he settled on hovering in the kitchen, looking over recipe after recipe and making soup that he served to everyone else.

Sam had decided he’d stay down in Washington DC a little longer. He needed to find a replacement for the support group he led and he wanted time to mull over being involved with everyone who lived at the Tower. He supported Steve and Bucky wholeheartedly and was essential in helping Bucky settle into a daily routine in New York. Sam told Steve that he would think about joining them in New York, but that he needed to make sure his group was covered, his transfer to New York was approved, and he could tie up any loose ends. Steve understood. Although he missed Sam, there were daily texts and phone calls between them. 

Bucky, for his part, was careful when it came to the sharp shoals of his mind. His time in Wakanda might have erased, the trigger words in his head, but it would take careful maneuvering to remove other triggers. He was quiet and introspective. There were times when he needed to be alone and the roof of the Tower provided time and space for him.

Steve gnawed over his worries continually, wondering how everyone could pull together again. The team was fractured and he was unsure of how to make things right. He brooded and fretted and finally, he was relieved when Bruce and Thor came back to the Tower. He could use that as an excuse to get everyone together.

‘Bruce…. you busy tonight?’ asked Steve. He watched as Bruce puttered around the kitchen, pulling down tea containers and studying them before putting them back on the shelf.

‘Not especially…. did you have something in mind?’ asked Bruce. He pulled down another tin, opened it up, sniffed, and nodded.

‘I was thinking we could maybe start watching movies together…. Bucky hasn’t seen many current movies, only bits and pieces of some. That was the first thing I could think of that everyone might like,’ suggested Steve.

Bruce poured hot water over the tea ball and crossed his arms. ‘Trying to get us all to play nice?’

Steve flushed. ‘Not so manipulative…. just thought it would be nice to do something together…. try to get comfortable with each other.’

‘I’m being mean,’ remarked Bruce, smiling lopsidedly. ‘After everything that’s happened, it might be nice to watch some movies together.’

‘Give us a chance to catch our breath and all. Do you think Clint and Scott would join us?’ asked Steve.

‘Just gotta ask them,’ shrugged Bruce. He took a sip of tea and then gazed at Steve over his teacup. ‘Maybe they could give some suggestions.’ Bruce paused and then added, ‘They like movies.’

‘From what Sam was telling me, they were trading movie quotes and doing movie trivia on the Raft…. it passed the time at least,’ murmured Steve.

Bruce nodded. ‘Ah, yes…. that whole mess after Crossbones and the King of Wakanda dying from an attack by Bucky, supposedly. That was sticky.’

‘That sums it up neatly. We figured out Bucky was framed but we had that confrontation and then Zemo happened and then, well… Tony and Bucky and I went at each other. It was pretty awful. Sam, Scott, Wanda, and Clint were imprisoned on the Raft by Ross. And Bucky, T’Challa, Natasha, and I broke them out. I’m sure Ross was happy about that,’ murmured Steve.

Bruce shook his head. ‘I don’t think Tony was thinking that far ahead…. giving Ross that much leeway and power.’

‘After what happened with Wanda and meeting the parent of one of the victims he wanted to act, and acting is something that Tony’s good at. Tony’s strength is acting when he believes he needs to but he doesn’t take a moment to consider all the repercussions and that’s when things go sideways,’ commented Steve.

‘You got that part right,’ agreed Bruce. He sipped more tea and leaned against the counter.

Steve sighed. ‘Thinking everything over, it just happened so fast and then things just… you know, fell apart.’

‘I don’t doubt it…. how are things overall, though? It seems like it’s gotten a little better,’ commented Bruce.

‘A little. Bucky still avoids Tony as much as he can and I’m not sure Tony’s comfortable around him, either. Tony tells me he’s OK and that he wants to get to know Bucky. Bucky tells me that he finds it hard to be around Tony right now. And you know how well Tony deals with rejection.’.

‘Yeah. It’s got to be kind of weird,’ said Bruce.

‘It is kind of weird. Maybe it’s wishful thinking but I’m hoping that watching movies together might help Tony and Bucky get over that awkwardness,’ admitted Steve.

Bruce shook his head. ‘It might take time. Can you imagine Bucky saying to Tony, ‘look, I murdered your parents, one of whom I knew back in the day, when I was the Winter Soldier. Would you like some popcorn?’’

Steve just stared at Bruce and then laughed.

**

Clint arrived a week later, unloading his gear on the floor reserved for him. He headed down to the common area where Steve was chatting with Sam and Scott. Scott had arrived that morning as well, sharing a guest room with Sam. 

Clint grinned when he saw all three of them.

‘Hey! Didn’t know you’d already been dropped off,’ said Clint to Scott, clapping him on the shoulder.

Scott stood up and gave Clint a quick hug. ‘My daughter told me I should get busy and do something because she was tired of me sighing all the time.’

‘Your daughter knows you pretty well,’ commented Steve with a smile. He’d seen photos but had never met Scott’s daughter.

‘She does know me pretty well. I’m happy to see all of you. How have things been?’ Scott asked Clint.

‘Farm’s doing OK. Laura and I were pretty busy getting caught up on everything and then I had to replace all the storm windows. That was a pain in the ass. I liked it, though. Manual labour is good for sorting shit out,’ answered Clint. ‘That and my wife appreciates my muscles.’

Scott snorted as did Sam. Steve merely smiled.

‘Have you given into Stark yet and moved in, Sam? Or are you holding out for the big bucks?’ teased Scott.

‘Come on, don’t do that. I don’t need him getting any ideas. I’m happy where I’m at for now. Got a real nice place near my auntie’s house. I can catch the train a few blocks away and head into work with no problem. And I have privacy,’ said Sam.

Steve traded amused looks with Clint.

‘It’s good for Stark to hear ‘no’ every now and then, I imagine,’ said Scott. He looked at Steve. ‘I didn’t hear you adding your two cents' worth. How are things going?’

Steve shrugged. ‘Slowly. Everyone is learning to live with everyone again. It’ll take time. There’s a lot of hurt and anger with more than enough to go around.’

‘True. I really needed to get away. I don’t regret helping you, Steve. Not at all. I knew the risks. But I was against the Accords to begin with, and then to go through the consequences of resisting the Accords…. to think that I may never see my daughter for a while… that no one knew where I was because Ross erased my entire existence…. Yeah. That pissed me off,’ explained Scott.

‘Are you angry at Tony?’ asked Sam.

‘Yeah. Because he didn’t think it through. I get that he wanted accountability. We are pretty powerful people and the thought of us running amok without checks and balances is unsettling. But there weren't any checks and balances with the Accords. It was all one sided. And that power is easily abused. As we found out,’ said Scott.

‘I’m sorry…’ began Steve but Scott cut him off with a sharp hand motion.

‘No, you don’t get to play the Captain America card, Steve. You asked for help. I agreed to help. Do me the favour of not treating me like a child who couldn’t make a decision and hope the odds were on my side,’ interrupted Scott.

Steve’s eyes widened. ‘I didn’t mean to imply that, Scott.’

‘I know. But unlike some of your friends here, I don’t know you well. I’m gonna cut you a little slack but I’m not going to let you forget that we’re all capable adults. Bucky included,’ added Scott, firmly.

Sam whistled. ‘Someone should have recorded that because that was beautiful.’

Clint pretended to wipe a tear from his eye. ‘Magnificent takedown, Scott.’

‘Nah. Steve doesn’t need any flack, either. He just needs to know when to accept what’s his and when to shrug all that other bullshit off,’ explained Scott.

‘The other guys keep telling me that so I better start listening,’ said Steve.

‘No hard feelings, Cap. I don’t mean to bust your balls or anything. I just don’t want you taking on more than your own fair share,’ explained Scott.

Steve nodded. ‘No, I understand. We’re good.’ He smiled at Scott who returned his smile with a tinge of relief.

‘Do you and Stark need to slug it out?’ asked Sam, looking at Scott for an answer.

‘It’ll pass. Last time didn’t exactly go well for him and I’ve had _practice_ since,’ said Scott, showing his teeth.

‘I like him,’ declared Clint. ‘Of course, I liked you back on the Raft when we sang as many Garth Brooks songs as we could remember.’

Sam groaned. ‘How could I forget that? If I have to hear ‘Friends in Low Places’ one more time….’

Steve laughed. ‘We’ll have to go out for karaoke. It’d be nice to see Clint and Scott try to outsing each other.’

‘So….as fun as this is…. did you want us here for a reason?’ asked Sam.

‘Well, since Bruce and Thor are back, thought we could all hang out again. Just try to get to know one another and reacquaint ourselves. I didn’t think us sitting around talking would be a good idea but maybe sitting around watching movies?’ answered Steve.

‘That sounds kinda cool. What movies did you have in mind?’ asked Scott.

‘Well, since Bucky hasn’t seen any of the Star Wars movies, I thought we could watch those. In order,’ added Steve.

‘What do you mean by that?’ asked Scott.

‘They released them in the wrong order. So if we’re going to do it right, we gotta go by the timeline and everything,’ answered Steve, bracing himself for an argument. He grinned at the looks on the others’ faces.

Sam rolled his eyes. ‘So you want to start with the prequel and work on up to the new one after Return of the Jedi.’

‘Exactly. It makes most sense that way,’ said Steve.

‘Why don’t we put it to a group vote. We can talk it over and then watch the movies in whatever order people think makes the most sense,’ suggested Sam.

‘Or we could do it the right way,’ said Steve, firmly. He kept his face blank because poking at Sam amused him. Bucky was right; he was a troll.

‘Maybe people want to watch it in the order they came out,’ pointed out Sam. ‘It’s not like we’re stupid or anything.’

‘I didn’t say you were, you know. I’m saying that if we go by the timeline, it makes a lot of sense,’ returned Steve.

‘Ohhhh! I know what’s going on, here. You just don’t want to watch episodes one through three,’ laughed Clint, elbowing Sam in his side.

Sam’s glare at Clint was all the answer everyone needed. Steve couldn’t help it. He cracked up as Sam’s glare intensified.

‘Hey, if we have to put up with Jar Jar Binks from almost the start, so do you,’ added Scott with a grin.

‘Ugh, fine. But don’t get mad at me if I comment through all three films,’ threatened Sam.

‘We won’t. You won’t be alone in muttering at the screen, anyway. Think to every movie Tony has ever watched with us and how he’s reacted,’ reminded Steve.

Sam groaned. ‘Can we duct tape his mouth? As a small payback for the whole Raft incident.’

‘I’ll have Bucky sit on him,’ said Steve. ‘That will keep him occupied. And we can hopefully watch the movies in peace.’

The other men just stared at Steve with pity.

‘You go ahead and think that,’ said Sam, a wry curl at the corner of his mouth.

Clint and Scott just nodded in agreement.

‘Seriously though, I think we should watch it timeline wise. I want to see if Bucky catches everything as the movies progress,’ explained Steve.

‘Ohhh… you want to see if he connects all the dots,’ said Sam, understanding at last. He grinned at Steve.

‘Oh, no. Now you got those two going,’ muttered Clint. He shook his head with the air of a man resigned to his fate.

‘If most everyone else wants to watch the movies as they were released though… that wouldn’t be bad, either,’ pointed out Scott.

‘No, it wouldn’t. But that’s too easy for Buck. He always loved figuring out what was going on in movies. Let’s see what everyone says,’ said Steve.

‘Fair enough. Movie night tonight, then?’ asked Clint, smiling eagerly.

Steve nodded. ‘Movie night tonight!’


	2. Prequel I or In Which Sam Has Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Movie night starts out with the gang watching the first prequel, much to Sam's disgust and Steve's insistence.
> 
> Everyone introduces the Star Wars universe to Bucky.
> 
> Why does the old guy have to die all the time? Scott wants to know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Sam. Jar Jar Binks wasn't my favourite either....

‘So let me make sure I get this… we are watching all of the Star Wars movies that are out and we’re watching them timeline wise?’ asked Thor. He was settled on the couch in front of the screen with a tub of popcorn in his lap. Jane sat next to him, balancing a smaller tub of popcorn on her lap along with a can of Sprite.

‘Yes. It makes the most sense, and it’ll be a lot of fun to watch,’ answered Steve.

‘Speak for yourself,’ muttered Sam, ‘You’ll be singing a different tune with the prequels.’ He scrunched up his nose as Scott chortled..

Wanda laughed. ‘Don’t be a hater, Sam,’ she teased with a wink, tossing her hair and grinning at him. She was sitting next to Clint, who had an arm around her and was smirking at Sam.

‘Sure, laugh at me now. We’ll see who’s laughing by the end of the first movie,’ said Sam.

Bucky leaned forward, studying the DVD case. ‘So this movie is where everything started. And everything comes after that.’

‘Yeah. Some people think that these three movies were unnecessary. Others think that they could have been made better… and then some others think that they were a good addition to the Star Wars universe,’ explained Steve.

‘Huh. Guess I won’t know what to think until we watch it,’ said Bucky.

‘You’re being very open minded about it,’ remarked Scott, grinning over at Sam who flipped him the bird.

‘Tsk tsk. My virgin eyes,’ teased Scott.

Tony opened his mouth then closed it, choosing instead to leer at Scott playfully.

‘Anything that might be too squicky for you, Bucky?’ asked Natasha. She was sitting on the other side of Bruce, curled up against him comfortably.

‘Anything in this first movie I should be worried about?’ asked Bucky.

‘Can’t really think of anything. Let’s just run it and you let us know if you need to take a break,’ suggested Steve.

‘OK, I’m ready!’ exclaimed Bucky as he balanced his popcorn bowl and soda can and exchanged grins with Steve.

‘You always did love the movies, Buck… and science fiction stuff. I think you’ll like these movies a lot!’ said Steve.

There was silence as everyone read the opening introduction crawl and cheered when the Star Wars logo appeared on screen. Bucky joined in after a few seconds’ hesitation and then leaned forward to watch.

‘I like the music,’ he said, humming the theme under his breath and looking over at Bruce who cleared his throat..

‘We all like the music,’ said Bruce. ‘Wait until ‘Empire Strikes Back’.... you’re going to _really_ love that soundtrack.’

‘That’s my favourite one, too,’ said Clint. ‘It’s got the best of everything. Iconic themes, too. ‘Darth Vader’s theme’, anyone?’

‘I’m not arguing that one,’ said Scott. ‘I do like the music from the newest one.’

‘Which one? ‘The Force Awakens’ or ‘Rogue One’?’ asked Clint.

‘Oh! Sorry… ‘The Force Awakens.’ Good stuff!’ said Scott. He studied the screen. ‘Is it just me or is Qui Gon kinda hot?’

Natasha snorted her amusement and Wanda giggled.

‘Like those older mentor types, huh, Tic Tac?’ teased Sam.

‘Yup. Gets me all sweaty and everything,’ said Scott with a wink.

Sam groaned and shook his head. ‘Keep your Jedi fantasies to yourself, man.’

Bucky pointed at the screen. ‘What is that?’

Sam looked and covered his face.

‘That, Bucky, is Jar Jar Binks,’ said Steve, relishing Sam’s soft moans.

‘Uh…. OK….’ Bucky’s voice trailed off as he watched. ‘Why?’ he added, confusion in his tone.

‘I ask myself the same damn thing,’ commiserated Sam as Scott laughed and Clint snickered.

Everyone watched the movie progress, especially Bucky. He leaned forward, entranced by the escape from Naboo.

‘Oh…. oh, that’s clever. She pulled a fast one,’ he said in an admiring tone as the “handmaiden” joined Qui Gon when he went to find a dealer for the parts needed for their ship.

‘You know who she is already?’ asked Bruce.

‘Yeah. It’s kind of obvious. She’s too outspoken to be a servant or handmaiden. She’s used to being listened to,’ said Bucky.

‘I didn’t even think of that,’ admitted Scott, staring at Bucky with admiration. ‘Not even once.’

‘I knew,’ said Natasha with a small smile.

‘Of course you did. Takes a spy to know a spy,’ teased Clint, giving Natasha a cautious smile.

Natasha snorted and Clint’s shoulders relaxed even more.

‘I think it’s great that she was able to trick everyone. Shows that she has moxie,’ put in Steve.

‘Only you would use moxie, Rogers,’ said Tony, winking at Steve. He was sitting in a chair with his tablet in his lap.

Steve grinned. ‘I’m surprised you know what the word is, Stark.’ He glanced at the tablet. ‘What are you doing, there? I thought you were going to pay attention to the movie.’

‘I am paying attention to the movie. I just like listening to all of you talk as well. Especially Big Red over there,’ added Tony, nodding his head at Bucky.

Steve smiled. ‘That’s a new one,’ he said.

‘I could come up with more if you’d like,’ said Tony.

‘Guys…. you’re detracting from my post-freeze movie experience,’ called out Bucky. He was watching the interaction between Padme and Anakin closely.

Tony subsided into soft grumbling but he watched the movie, only occasionally looking down at his tablet and tapping at it.

‘What the hell are Midichlorians?’ asked Bucky.

‘Uh…. who wants to take one for the team?’ asked Clint.

Sam shook his head ‘no’ and leaned back, folding his arms across his chest.

‘They’re the explanation for why some have the Force and some do not,’ explained Wanda, shooting an amused look at Sam.

‘So a virus? Or infection?’ asked Bucky.

‘Nooo…. it’s really an odd explanation. Lots of people don’t like it,’ said Bruce.

‘’That’s not how the Force works,’’ quoted Sam, the corner of his mouth quirked up.

‘We all liked that it was mysterious…. that some people felt the Force and some didn’t…. and not with this ridiculous notion of something in the blood,’ said Scott. ‘I mean, why take the mystery out of it? I’d like to think I would have been a Jedi.’

‘You would have been a fine Jedi,’ said Wanda with a smile. ‘Although I think you would have driven Master Windu to despair.’

‘Hey, Stevie…. you think we could make one of those things?’ asked Bucky. He was staring at the podracer that Anakin had built.

‘Uh…. you might want to ask Tony that one,’ said Steve. 

Tony stared at the screen. ‘Still thinking about those floating cars, huh?’

‘Look. If anyone would make a floating car or a podracer, it’d be you, Stark,’ said Bucky. ‘You already have outshone your old man.Why not go for broke?’

Tony looked pleased and upset at the same time. ‘My dad might disagree with you.’

‘I don’t think so,’ put in Steve, carefully. Tony’s parents were still a delicate subject. Steve knew that when it came to Bucky, they mostly were in uncharted territory with how Tony felt. 

‘If we teleported your dad to the here and now, and he could see that you made Stark Industries much more than a weapons manufacturer, that you truly became what he envisioned so long ago…. he would be astounded. It would be worth it, to see Howard Stark speechless, huh, Stevie?’ asked Bucky.

Steve chortled. ‘It would be. Your clean energy would be more than enough to quiet him… and then, he’d never stop asking questions.’

Tony smiled and the tension eased. ‘You’re all delusional. But thank you.’

‘I think we could make a podracer,’ muttered Bucky. ‘We’d have to figure out those engines.’ 

‘We could. Maybe you’d like to stop by the shop tomorrow and we could draw up some configurations?’ offered Tony. He looked as though he was casually putting the invitation out there but Steve could see his fingers were white around the tablet’s edges.

‘Yeah…. yeah, that would be cool!’ enthused Bucky. He smiled at Tony, the first real smile that he’d ever given him. 

Tony busied himself by poking at his tablet, a tell that Steve knew meant Tony was nervous. ‘Well…. come on down when you’re ready. I’ll have Friday tell me you’re there and I’ll make sure she will let you in.’

Bucky nodded. ‘Maybe we could build a small one first. A model, just to see and make sure it runs OK. Then maybe a life sized one.’

‘Nothing wrong with testing it out first. If that’s a success and I can find a way to mass produce it, we could have them out for Christmas. Kids could have their very own model podracers,’ said Tony.

‘I want one,’ said Scott. ‘I get dibs on the first one.’

‘Of course you do,’ intoned Bucky. ‘You get the first one. Sam gets the next one,’ he added, grinning. ‘What? Like I don’t know you by now?’

‘That’s just plain scary, man. Imma need Stark to make me a spare pair of wings. Just in case you decide you need to prove your point,’ laughed Sam.

‘The problem though….’ Bucky watched the pod race with great interest. ‘Hey, Tony…. do you have land in the desert? Because I can see a problem right now with us racing these things.’

Steve groaned. ‘How is this my life?’ 

‘I think we could go on a planet where racing wouldn’t hurt anything or anyone,’ put in Thor. He scratched his side and said, ‘That is, if I get the third podracer.’

‘Deal,’ agreed Tony. ‘A planet, you say?’

‘Indeed. Much like the environment of the one in yonder movie. A bare landscape that no podracer could ruin. We could even set up a racing course,’ said Thor.

Bucky’s eyes gleamed. ‘A racing course,’ he breathed.

‘Now you did it,’ said Steve wryly to Thor, who only nodded at Bucky with a gleam in his own eyes.

‘How on earth would we get there?’ asked Clint.

‘Heimdall, of course. He’ll call down the Bifrost and take all of us. And the podracers,’ explained Thor.

Bucky laughed. ‘The future is something else now, Stevie!’

‘It sure is, Buck,’ said Steve, smiling as Clint and Sam whooped in excitement.

Natasha spoke up. ‘What do you think of the movie so far, Bucky?’

‘It’s OK. This Anakin is important, I’m assuming,’ answered Bucky.

‘You could say that,’ answered Natasha.

‘Oh, hey!’ Bucky straightened up as Darth Maul appeared on the screen. ‘What’s with this dude?’

‘Oh, that’s a Sith apprentice,’ explained Clint.

‘A what?’ asked Bucky.

‘So the Force has a dark side and a light side to it,’ started Clint.

‘And the light side users are Jedis,’ picked up Scott. ‘Like Qui Gon and Obi-Wan, his padawan or apprentice, basically. And the dark side is the Sith. The Sith Lord and his apprentice.’

‘What about the grey?’ asked Bucky. ‘Not everything’s black and white you know. There’s got to be something in the middle.’

‘They don’t really get into that in the movies,’ said Sam. ‘Some of the books do mention it, but here, it’s pretty simplistic. Dark versus light, Sith versus Jedi.’

‘Huh. So this Darth Maul…. he’s an apprentice?’ asked Bucky.

‘Ooops. Guys, spoilers!’ hissed Scott.

‘Shit. I’m sorry, man,’ apologized Clint.

‘It’s OK,’ said Bucky. ‘I can see he’s following orders. So he’s not in charge. And he’s too…. noticeable.’

‘That could be a red herring, you know. Some flash to distract,’ pointed out Natasha.

‘Could be. Probably isn’t. If they aren’t gonna get into the grey part of the Force, then they’re not gonna get too complicated with any of this,’ decided Bucky.

‘You’re worse than Tony and that’s saying something,’ teased Bruce. 

‘Hey, Science pal, my comments are the best comments… no one is as good as me,’ protested Tony.

Bucky grinned and shrugged. ‘It is what it is. I’m enjoying the movie, don’t get me wrong. Just that it doesn’t delve too deep.’

‘See, that’s why I’m not a big fan of the first three movies,’ said Sam. ‘I’m with Bucky. There’s information, sure but I honestly think it could have been done differently. Better. And not necessarily in this direction. You’ll see, Bucky in the later movies where I’m coming from.’

‘Redundant info, huh? Well, we can compare notes when we get there,’ suggested Bucky.

‘Cool,’ said Sam with a smile. He watched the screen for a bit. ‘Anything else stand out to you?’

‘Yeah. Looks like human trafficking happens even in fantasy stories,’ said Bucky. ‘Anakin and his mother were slaves…. humans, yeah, as Anakin said. But they weren’t free.’

‘No, they weren’t. And she was a single parent,’ pointed out Sam. ‘She was raising Anakin all by herself. That must have been so hard. Protecting him as much as she could.’

‘Sarah would have liked her, Stevie. She would have liked that grit. Why did they take him away from her? Why couldn’t he see her again?’ asked Bucky.

‘That was what they did. They’d find children and infants who were Force sensitive and take them in…. train them to be Jedis,’ said Scott.

‘But… their families? Didn’t they miss them? Didn’t they want to see their children? Isn’t that just as awful as the situation Anakin and his mother were in?’ asked Bucky. ‘That could be considered human trafficking, too. Was it always their choice?’

‘Man, Bruce is right. You _are_ worse than Tony but in a real good way,’ said Clint. ‘They never really answer those questions. But are there consequences to taking Anakin away? Yeah. Yeah, there are.’

‘Can’t be good,’ said Bucky after some silence. He watched as everyone was stunned to discover that Padme is the Queen of Naboo. ‘Hah! Suckers!’ crowed Bucky.

Scott snickered. ‘You called it way back, dude. Now things get interesting,’ he said.

Bucky was quiet as he watched the ensuing fight for Naboo. He reached over for popcorn from Clint’s bowl and frowned when Qui Gon faced off against Darth Maul.

‘This doesn’t look good,’ Bucky muttered. 

‘This is a thing in these sorts of movies, isn’t it?’ asked Scott after a few minutes.

‘What is a thing?’ asked Clint.

‘The whole old dude has to die thing. You know, like any time some kid meets a mentor or old person, whatever…. you know that the old person’s gonna gack by the end,’ clarified Scott.

Natasha threw him an amused look. ‘It’s part of how myths and storytelling works. You know that.’

‘Well, yeah…. but it’s so common,’ griped Scott.

‘That’s why it’s a trope…. it’s part of storytelling,’ put in Wanda. ‘It doesn’t matter where in the world you hear stories. There are often mentors, and when they impart their wisdom and experience and training, they often die so the main person can go on.’

‘I don’t have to like it, though,’ muttered Scott. ‘I mean, couldn’t the old person live for once?’

‘There’s stories in which the mentor does live, but that’s not the normal cycle of things,’ pointed out Wanda.

‘Ugh,’ pouted Scott. 

‘You just liked hot Qui Gon,’ teased Bucky. ‘Think you could have gotten some action with him?’

‘Hey, Anakin’s mom couldn’t get any action with him so I think Scott would be out of luck,’ called out Tony.

Scott made a face at Tony while everyone laughed.

‘Oh…. final scene,’ murmured Wanda as they watched the funeral and conversation between Mace Windu and Yoda.

‘I see what you meant by spoilers now, Scott. That’s OK guys,’ said Bucky to Clint and Scott who looked remorseful. ‘You didn’t really ruin anything. Besides, we know which is which… at least, who was the apprentice. You can’t tell me who the Sith Lord is, though!’

‘Watch,’ said Clint, rolling his eyes. ‘You’ll figure it out, anyway.’

They watched the final credits roll and Bucky stretched, raising his arms above his head. 

‘Did you like it?’ asked Thor. He was content to mostly watch the movie and snuggle with Jane.

‘I did. You didn’t say much, Jane,’ commented Bucky.

‘I was enjoying listening to all of you. Don’t worry, I’ll have plenty to say later on,’ said Jane with a smile.

‘Good. So when do we start the next movie?’ asked Bucky.

‘Everyone free tomorrow night, barring any weird stuff happening?’ asked Steve. He waited until everyone checked their calendars and confirmed they were free.

‘Great! Let’s get together tomorrow night. Episode two is up next!’ exclaimed Steve.

‘You survived Jar Jar Binks. Congratulations,’ intoned Sam. 

‘If I can survive the Red Room, a CGI frog isn’t going to mess me up,’ replied Bucky.

Sam snorted with laughter. ‘Just you wait,’ he warned and got up to wash his popcorn bowl.

‘Wait… there’s more of him in the next movie? Sam? Sam???!!’ called out Bucky.

Sam just chuckled as Bucky’s voice went higher in alarm.

‘Shouldn’t have busted his wings, huh?’ teased Clint. tugging Bucky to follow him. 

Bucky rolled his eyes. ‘Punk!’

Clint put a hand over his heart and staggered dramatically. ‘You love me, you really love me!’

‘Let’s go see if we can shoot some stuff up at the range before bed,’ said Clint.

‘A fellow after my own heart,’ grinned Bucky. ‘See the rest of you tomorrow night!’ He waved goodbye to everyone and followed Clint out the door.


	3. Prequel II or In Which Sam Has More Issues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What's love got to do with it or why Jedi are horrible at romance.
> 
> Also, was this all necessary? Sam doesn't think so.

‘So tonight’s the second movie,’ said Bucky, settling down into the couch, nudging Sam’s knee with his as he made room for Natasha and Clint.

‘Yeah. It’s… well, it’s got some politics in it. And some character development,’ explained Sam.

Scott snorted. ‘Sure. If you want to call that weird thing a relationship or anything.’

‘What weird thing?’ asked Bucky.

‘You’ll find out. Spoilers, you know. I’m just saying. Maybe it was the actors or something? Cos I didn’t feel any chemistry whatsoever between them,’ said Scott.

‘I was wondering about that myself,’ said Bruce. ‘It did seem odd to me at the time but I thought I was misreading things.’

‘I don’t think you were. But we’ll see what everyone thinks tonight. Maybe we’ll get a group consensus or something,’ said Scott. 

Wanda nudged his arm with hers and smiled. ‘Maybe you were expecting something else instead.’

‘Let’s start the movie and find out,’ said Steve, firmly, before Wanda and Scott could start debating the finer points of relationships and body language.

Everyone watched and cheered again when the music started up.

‘Is this a ritual or something?’ wondered Bucky.

‘Yeah. Remember, when these were released in the theatre, it was sixteen years since ‘Return of the Jedi’ and it was a couple years in between films. Everyone was hyped to see what happened next,’ answered Clint.

‘OK,’ said Bucky. ‘That makes sense.’ He watched the next scene, drank some soda and then said, ‘Uh…. assassination attempt, huh? That kicked it off pretty quick.’

‘Yeah. Now you see why they have all those decoys. They know what the risks are…. and sometimes, they die,’ said Steve, quietly.

‘Yeah. That’s gonna piss Padme off, I’m sure,’ commented Bucky. ‘She’s pretty strong willed. And she’s close to her handmaidens. She inherited the throne, right?’

‘They elect their Queens. She was only 14 when she began her rule,’ answered Clint.

‘You are the biggest nerd,’ laughed Natasha, ruffling Clint’s hair. ‘Where do you read this stuff?’

‘There are articles and things! I like to know the backstory,’ Clint yelped. He had a smile on his face, though. ‘But she’s now a senator, representing Naboo.’

‘OK,’ said Bucky, nodding his understanding. ‘So she’s done being Queen?’

‘Yeah. She’s done.. Oh oh…. see, that’s why that Jedi code was messed up,’ commented Clint, rolling his eyes at Anakin’s fumbling admiring phrases.

‘Is that…. is he flirting with her?’ asked Bucky.

‘Maybe? He’s spent too much time in the wilds with Obi-Wan,’ said Sam. ‘He’s been training as a padawan, see. And holding a flame for Padme, apparently.’

‘Kid, that’s just embarrassing. Look, even your mentor is embarrassed,’ pointed out Bucky.

‘I think Obi-Wan is just done, period. Oh, dear…’ murmured Thor.

‘See, this is what I don’t like about this whole thing. I mean, what’s Padme supposed to say? ‘Oh, Ani, I, too, have thought and dreamed about you for ages and a day….’ Please. She’s been busy ruling and learning the ropes as a senator. It’s nice that she thought of him from time to time but… really?’ pointed out Jane. 

‘I agree,’ said Natasha. ‘Ani, don’t be that guy.’

Steve coughed and hid a smile behind his hand. He sat up straighter in his chair when Anakin and Obi-Wan chased the would be assassin through Coruscant. 

‘See? This is why we need flying cars,’ said Bucky.

‘I see no great advantage if everyone else also has flying cars,’ disagreed Tony.

‘Well, there’s that. But let’s say we’re the only one with flying cars,’ amended Bucky.

‘That isn’t how it works in the real world. Everyone has flying cars and no one still knows how to drive,’ said Tony.

‘Can’t disagree with you there,’ allowed Bucky, watching as Anakin maneuvered his way through the city.

‘Oh…. of course she gets killed. That’s what I would have done,’ said Bucky, nodding his approval.

‘Me, too. That and it advances the plot,’ added Natasha.

‘I’m sorry. There’s a plot here?’ asked Sam.

‘You’re just upset about Jar Jar making a cameo appearance,’ sad Scott, nudging Sam’s arm.

‘That could have stayed on the cutting room floor,’ said Sam.

‘Oh, lucky Anakin…. he gets to whisk Padme away to Naboo,’ said Clint.

‘That’s how they get these two together? She needs to be protected and so Anakin is the one to do so? Oh boy,’ said Bucky.

‘I really disliked the prequels…. well, at least one through three. I didn’t think it added much to the whole story and it was tedious,’ griped Sam.

‘I’m going to agree with Sam here,’ said Bruce. ‘If you’re going to make three movies, at least make movies that aren’t retreads of stuff we know.’

‘I’m assuming I’ll find out in the fourth movie?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. Now the movie that I like to call 3.5 really is what a prequel should be. Can’t wait for you to watch that one,’ said Sam.

‘I like that one a lot, too,’ agreed Bruce. ‘If you want to do backstory, that’s how to do it right.’

‘Geez. You weren’t kidding when you said there were strong opinions about these first three movies,’ commented Bucky.

‘Yeah. These two over here,’ began Tony but Clint yelled, ‘Me, too!’ and Tony merely rolled his eyes before continuing, ‘The Three Stooges over there are picky with their meta. Me, I don’t mind the first three movies. I think they fill in a few blanks.’

‘I’ll give you that, sure. But the whole Anakin thing?’ pointed out Sam, tipping his head towards Bucky. ‘Sorry, Bucky. Spoilers. But the whole Anakin thing? Eh. That story was pretty much told. They could have done something else. Like they did in ‘Rogue One.’’

Bucky’s attention was divided; half to what people were commenting and half to what he was watching. 

‘Oh…. oh, there’s something Schmidt would have loved, Stevie. Clones like you,’ he breathed, staring at the screen.

‘Uh… you OK, Buck?’ asked Steve, ready to shut down the movie, his hand reaching for the remote..

‘I’m fine… just imagine, though. A thousand, no, thousands of Steve Rogers like you are now…. ready and waiting for orders,’ said Bucky.

‘That’s… that’s awful,’ shivered Steve.

‘Well, they got you and half of you with me,’ added Bucky with a humorless smile. ‘And look what we both did on our own.’

‘Sometimes, I wonder if it was a good thing that the formula died with Erskine. It probably was. They weren’t going to stop with me,’ said Steve, flickering a wry smile of his own. ‘Not if I was truly the super soldier they were hoping for.’

‘Except that you are much more than that… you are much more than they bargained for,’ put in Scott. ‘Erskine didn’t want just anyone. He wanted someone who could be what the formula was…. meaning that he wanted the best of the best. And you were the one he chose.’

‘I like this guy, Stevie,’ said Bucky, slanting a warm smile at Scott.

‘Thanks. Look, we all know that Erskine could have chosen anyone…. anyone at all. But he chose you, Steve. He knew what you had inside of you. The formula only brought it out. It matched your outsides to the inside for once,’ said Scott.

‘Now I’m beginning to understand why you wanted him on your side,’ said Tony, staring at Scott. ‘You’re more than just a smart mouth, aren’t you?’

‘I’m just a regular Joe who got into something bigger than myself, Tony. What I keep in mind is that no matter what advantages I have, I can’t abuse them. I gotta take care of the ones who can’t take care of themselves. Otherwise, I’m no better than the criminals we put away,’ said Scott.

‘Glad you’re _our_ regular Joe, then,’ said Sam. ‘That plus I think you kept Clint sane while we were in the Raft. We had our own karaoke night there but I think it’d be much better if we went out.’

‘True. I like the idea of karaoke night. Let’s do it!’ exclaimed Clint, pumping a fist into the air.

Bucky chuckled and then watched as Anakin rescued his mother. ‘Oh, shit.’

‘Yeah. Oh, shit indeed,’ agreed Steve.

‘Was that… was that Qui-Gon?’ asked Bucky, his eyes wide.

‘Yup. He…. he’s still around through the Force,’ said Clint.

‘See, this is why it’s a shit idea to keep kids from their family,’ said Bucky, frowning. ‘He was gone too long…. he was separated too soon!’ 

‘The Jedi have made mistakes. This is one of their bigger ones, I think,’ said Wanda. ‘It never is good to separate loved ones for long. I couldn’t have survived without Pietro’

‘He kept you safe?’ asked Steve.

‘He was my rock. He helped me when everything was overwhelming. My grief over losing our parents took almost everything from me. I miss him so much,’ said Wanda, tears welling in her eyes.

‘I’m sorry, Wanda,’ said Clint. ‘If I could have changed things, I would have.’

‘I know. My brother made his choice, Clint. Honour his memory,’ said Wanda, reaching out to lay a comforting hand against Clint’s jaw. 

Clint leaned into her hand before gently lowering it and holding her hand within his.

‘He’s so angry…. this is where it starts to go wrong. I can feel it,’ murmured Bucky, watching as Anakin’s face changed from grief to anger.

‘The Jedi say that anger is the way to the dark side of the Force. It opens up the door to it,’ said Natasha. ‘I could see myself becoming Sith because if I had that power…. well, there it is.’

‘I wouldn’t. I mean, become Sith. I’d want to be a Jedi,’ said Scott.

‘Of course you would, Tic Tac. You’d make a great Jedi,’ said Sam. ‘I don’t know if I’d want to be a Jedi. At least, not how they have it set up.’

‘That’s a good point,’ said Bruce. ‘I’m afraid that with my anger, Sith is the only path I would tread.’

‘That would be interesting…. one part of you Jedi, the Other Guy Sith. We’d have to make two lightsabers for you,’ said Scott, keeping his tone light.

Bruce snorted and smiled wryly. ‘Let’s not test that one out.’

As Bucky’s attention swung back to the movie, he groaned. ‘Nice. I agree with Obi-Wan. This is what is considered a rescue mission?’

‘They get a gold star for trying,’ said Scott with a grin.

Bucky rolled his eyes. ‘Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.’

‘I think Padme is gonna be fine, though,’ reassured Clint. 

‘This is why Anakin has a big ol’ Jedi crush on her. She’s something else, Stevie…. her and Peggy would have gotten along great!’ exclaimed Bucky.

‘They sure would have. Padme’s just the type of person Peggy likes,’ agreed Steve.

‘This is the only part of the movie I like,’ spoke up Jane. She was curled up against Thor as she slowly ate popcorn. ‘Padme isn’t waiting to be rescued. She can rescue herself just fine…. and Anakin, too.’

‘True,’ agreed Natasha. ‘Which means what happens in the third movie doesn’t make sense to me at all.’

‘We’ll have to wait until we watch that to talk about it,’ reminded Jane. ‘But I agree.’

‘So do I,’ said Wanda. She frowned slightly. ‘I think they messed it up.’

‘Well, the third one is coming up next. So whatever you three are agreeing on, we can talk about then. Oh, there we go!’ exclaimed Bucky, watching the battle.

‘It’s interesting, seeing all of these Jedi in one space,’ said Scott. ‘I liked that part…. and Padme, too, of course!’

‘Uh oh,’ muttered Bucky. ‘That’s gonna come back and bite them in the ass.’

‘What? Oh, you mean Mace Windu killing that kid’s dad? Yeah…. probably,’ said Clint. 

‘All these clones. That’s something else…. if that could happen in real life, there’s plenty of people who would use this technology,’ said Bucky.

‘I’m glad we don’t have it in real life,’ said Wanda.

‘Ooo! Saruman!’ exclaimed Clint.

‘That’s the wrong movie,’ scolded Sam, hiding a grin behind his hand.

Clint puffed up. ‘It’s still the same guy. Only Jedi-like and everything now.’

‘I’m pretty sure that’s not how it works, Clint,’ laughed Scott.

‘Whatever. Ohhhh…. go Yoda!’ cheered Clint.

Bucky watched until the end of the movie before he spoke. ‘Now I know what you were all talking about before the movie started. I don’t think those two could play being in love if their lives depended on it.’

‘Bad super spies. No cookies,’ teased Clint, as he nudged Natasha.

‘Yoda is also badass,’ declared Scott. ‘Did you all see his using the Force and all?’

‘Didn’t miss a minute,’ said Bucky. ‘That’s how Jedi masters do things, huh?’

‘When they have to, yeah. They’re supposed to be the guardians, you know? Not having to do all that on a regular basis but if they have to, they’ll take care of business,’ explained Sam.

‘OK. Well, that was OK. That’s the whole start of the ‘Clone Wars’ business…. Anakin secretly marries Padme… and then we have the last part left, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. Do you want to watch in a couple of nights? I think Sam has a couple of night meetings,’ said Steve.

‘I do. Sorry, Bucky,’ said Sam.

‘No need to apologize. Take good care of those vets. I’m OK to wait a couple of days. Let’s me think these first two movies over a bit. 'Sides, Stark and I got some planning to do,’ reminded Bucky.

Tony perked up. ‘Yes, yes we do. I wanted your advice on a couple other things while we were down there, if that’s OK?’

‘Sure. I’ll take a look. And we’ll build some sweet podracers,’ cackled Bucky.

Steve smiled at Bucky with a fond look on his face. Sam just rolled his eyes and snorted. 

‘See you all in a couple of days. I better get some sleep. I gotta drive back tomorrow morning,’ said Sam, as he stood up to set his bowl and glass in the dishwasher.

‘I’ll walk you down,’ offered Steve. Sam nodded with a pleased grin on his face.

‘See you in a couple of days, Sam!’ called out Bucky and Sam turned to smile and wave acknowledgement before heading out.

‘Hey, anyone up for playing some video games? Maybe some Mario Kart,’ suggested Clint. ‘Think of it as practice for podracing.’

To Steve’s utter non-surprise, Bucky and Thor immediately volunteered to play while Natasha, Jane, and Wanda stood up to pour some wine and return to watch.

Tony and Bruce sat closer so they could talk shop, each gesturing enthusiastically and pulling up images from Tony’s tablet.

Their voices all faded away as Steve left the room with Sam. 

‘Did you have a good time?’ asked Steve, watching Sam closely for his answer..

‘Yeah. It’s fun watching these movies,’ said Sam.

‘Even though you have to see Jar Jar Binks again?’ teased Steve.

‘You are such a troll, Rogers,’ complained Sam, rolling his eyes.

‘All right…. I’ll see you in a couple of days. Have a good night. Get some good sleep,’ said Steve.

‘Thanks. See you later!’ said Sam. 

Steve gave Sam a quick hug and then went back upstairs to join the others. He was looking forward to watching the last of the prequels and seeing what Bucky thought. It was a niggling hope but he thought that everyone getting together would turn out to be a good thing after all.


	4. Prequel III or In Which Grief is Given its Due

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam still has feelings.
> 
> Wanda finally talks about Pietro.
> 
> Clint Barton remains a troll.

‘I just want you all to know that I’m tolerating this movie so we can get to the next one,’ announced Sam as he settled in.

Steve shot him an amused look. ‘Of course you are. Still, don’t you think it adds something?’

‘Like what?’ challenged Sam. ‘We can talk about this after Bucky’s seen the movie but honestly, what? Don’t we already know the basic info?’ 

‘Yeah. But there’s some stuff that was filled in,’ protested Steve.

‘Oh, you mean the stuff that they got wrong?’ asked Sam, frustrated. ‘Like, ugh, can’t talk about it yet! I’m gonna have to wait until ‘Return of the Jedi’ and that’s three movies after this one.’

Bucky grinned. ‘Stevie, stop getting Sam all riled up. Let’s just watch the movie.’

‘This one might be a little intense, Bucky,’ said Wanda, quietly. 

‘How intense?’ he asked, meeting Wanda’s eyes.

‘There will be scenes that could be hard for you to watch. Just let us know if we need to stop the film,’ answered Wanda.

‘OK. I will. Thanks for letting me know,’ said Bucky.

‘How long has it been since anyone’s seen this film?’ asked Thor. He was leaning forward, watching Anakin fight Dooku.

‘It’s been a few years. I’m a little blurry on the details,’ answered Bruce. ‘So this is kind of like watching it brand new for me.’

‘Same here,’ said Clint. ‘I watched it a couple of times but then just switched back to watching the original trilogy.’

‘I haven’t seen it since the premiere. I didn’t care for it too much. I’m with Sam, here,’ said Jane. She wrinkled her nose. ‘And I hate the ending.’

‘I might have seen it a couple of years ago. I don’t remember everything, either,’ said Tony. He frowned as Anakin and Padme talked. ‘You know, this is going to go poorly. They’re married and it’s secret and oh boy…’

‘What could possibly go wrong? Anakin is freaked out, Padme doesn’t know what’s going on with him and Shady McShady Palpatine…. this is gonna end well,’ muttered Sam.

Scott snickered. ‘That’s one way of putting it. My daughter and I just watched this last week so I have the details pretty clear in my head. Oh…. way to piss off Anakin, Jedi council,’ he added.

‘They have a point, of course. He really is uh, reckless, as Obi-Wan has called him. But to ask him to spy on Palpatine? No way that’s going to end well,’ commented Natasha. 

‘Let’s see how this backfires,’ added Sam. 

‘Wookiees! And Yoda!’ exclaimed Scott. ‘This is my favourite part of the movie. See, they should have just made a movie with the Jedis hanging out on Kashyyyk. And meeting young Chewbacca and all that. That would have been awesome!’

‘I would have watched the hell out of that movie,’ said Sam. ‘A movie about Wookiee culture? Instead of the whole human-centric thing again? I’m down with it.’

‘See? Just a few minutes and back to oh, geez. Really??? OK, who knew about this!’ demanded Bucky.

‘Knew about what?’ asked Steve.

‘That Palpatine was this Darth mook,’ clarified Bucky.

‘Uh. The first movie,’ answered Natasha, blinking at Bucky slowly. ‘I can’t believe you didn’t pick up on it.’

‘Was I supposed to? Because this explains so much,’ muttered Bucky. ‘Does he think Anakin is going to buy it?’

‘Sure he will. Remember what happened to his mother? How powerless he felt? What he said to Padme?’ asked Tony.

‘Shit. Yeah, he’s gonna go for it, isn’t he?’ said Bucky. ‘I can see why, though. He’s so scared of losing his wife.’

Jane snorted. ‘Possessive jerk.’ 

Thor grinned down at her. ‘If I were afraid to lose you, that would make me a possessive jerk, too?’

‘I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t fall for any of the crap Anakin did. He’s vulnerable to manipulation, sure. But seeing his wife as a possession and not a person who he could talk to and work things out with really isn’t cool,’ answered Jane.

‘I agree. Which is why we talk about things,’ said Thor, lifting Jane’s hand and kissing the back of it.

Tony made gagging sounds and dodged a pillow thrown by Jane.

Bucky laughed and turned his attention back to the film. ‘Well, this just got worse. Darth Vader? This is where he pledges himself to become a Sith Lord? Ugh.’

‘Yeah. He makes a conscious decision to turn his back on his training as a Jedi and betray the order,’ said Clint. ‘It’s overall pretty bad and will have huge consequences in the universe. Aww, no, Sith Lord!’

‘That’s ingenious,’ commented Bucky, watching as the clone troopers turned on their Jedi leaders. ‘Palpatine must have planned that since the beginning.’

‘Pretty much. That was programmed for when the time was right. Gotta admire the long con,’ agreed Natasha.

‘This is why I don’t let anyone else mess with my stuff,’ pointed out Tony. ‘I don’t want to risk something like that happening.’

‘What would happen if you were mind controlled?’ asked Scott. He blinked as Steve, Clint, and Thor glared at him. ‘Ohhh…. damn it. Sorry….’

‘And that is why I have failsafes for that, too, now,’ answered Tony. He glanced at Wanda who seemed to shrink in on herself.

‘Look. That… that’s over with, Wanda. I’ve had to do a lot of thinking about, well, about everything. And I understand why you came after me… and well, the ‘Merchant of Death’ legacy just bites me in the ass every time,’ stammered Tony, tapping his fingers nervously on his tablet.

‘I wish I would have known…. I would have chosen differently…. and my brother…’ Wanda’s voice trailed off and she bowed her head.

‘If I could change the past, I would…. I’m sorry, too, Wanda,’ said Tony, reaching out to Wanda and stopping shy of touching her arm.

Clint put his arm around Wanda. ‘Hey…. we all wish that would have ended differently. I’m sorry he isn’t alive and with us, too.’

Bucky looked at Steve, who pressed his lips together. Steve had told Bucky about Ultron and Wanda and her brother Pietro, so he knew the history. It was one thing to hear it spoken matter of factly and another to see the vulnerability and grief on his friends’ faces.

‘Wanda… it’s so easy to look at past events and judge yourself harshly. But it’s unfair to you. You are always going to be the hardest on yourself,’ said Bucky, softly.

‘I…. I…’ Wanda gulped and her eyes welled with tears.

‘If anyone knows how it feels to be bowed down with regret and grief and rage…. it’s me, Wanda. Remember the talks we had? Don’t forget what we talked about,’ reminded Bucky.

He nodded encouragingly at Wanda when she tremulously smiled first. 

‘Thank you….’ she said softly, wiping her tears from her eyes. ‘I just miss him so much.’

‘And we’re here for you, Wanda. You’re not alone,’ added Steve. ‘We’re maybe not the family you expected and we aren’t going to replace Pietro…. but we’ll support and care for you.’

Wanda nodded and her attention turned to the screen. ‘Ohhh….’

Wanda glanced nervously at Bucky as the slaughter of the younglings commenced. ‘We can stop the film here if you want, Bucky.’

‘No…. I’m OK. Thank you, though,’ said Bucky, smiling reassuringly at Wanda. ‘Well, Anakin pushed things too far, here. The difference between him and me is I was…. forced to do these things. Anakin chose to do this atrocity.’

‘That is crucial,’ said Wanda. ‘I wouldn’t hurt a child, either…. but I also know that things can happen outside my control.’

‘See, that’s where things can get dangerous,’ added Sam. ‘People can blame themselves for bad things happening…. and they might have been part of it but that doesn’t mean that they weren’t coerced into doing it.’

‘That wasn’t the case with Anakin, though,’ pointed out Bucky. ‘He chose to turn his back on the Jedi order. And the light side of the Force.’

‘True. Did you see those Wookiees kicking ass again, Scott?’ asked Sam.

‘Of course I did. And Chewbacca! Anyone notice that was Chewie?’ asked Scott, excitedly.

‘I take it Chewbacca comes up again in the movies,’ said Bucky.

‘Uh… maybe?’ said Scott, trying for detachment.

‘Heh. That’s OK. Wonder what role he has in the upcoming movies,’ said Bucky.

‘You’ll find out,’ said Scott. ‘You’re not getting more out of me.’

Bucky chuckled. ‘Fair enough. I’ll find out and then we can talk about it.’

Everyone watched as Padme confronted Anakin.

‘Oh, he did _not_!’ snarled Bucky.

‘Yeah, he did,’ sighed Sam.

‘I hope Obi-Wan fucks him up…. you just don’t… he said he _loved_ her,’ protested Bucky.

‘He did…. but…’ Steve paused, unsure of how to continue.

‘He’s crossed the line,’ said Scott. ‘That’s what he did.’

Bucky shook his head. ‘The things I did as…. well, as the Asset… there were women and children who were… collateral…. and…. I understand how Wanda feels.’

‘How does one make amends?’ asked Wanda as she watched Obi-Wan face Anakin.

‘The best one can,’ answered Sam. ‘None of us sitting here is blameless. We’ve all done things we regret. It’s recognizing those mistakes and not repeating them. In your case, Bucky, it’s not being too hard on yourself as well. Coercion and brainwashing take away freedom of choice.’

‘I know. That doesn’t mean I can’t feel guilt… regret…. all of that,’ commented Bucky.

‘Well, that’s the difference between you and Anakin,’ said Sam, but Scott was shaking his head.

‘I’m gonna disagree with that because of ‘Return of the Jedi,’ dude…. I mean, no spoilers or anything but you know, Sam,’ hinted Scott.

Sam nodded. ‘Right…. well, we’ll see what Bucky thinks. OK. Oh, here’s the part that Jane probably hates.’

Jane growled as Padme went into labor. ‘See? She’s not the same person she was when the prequel started. Where is the independent Queen? Where is the spirit and ferocity? This just sucks on so many levels.’

‘Do you think it was the grief?’ asked Bucky. ‘She loved Anakin.’

‘I don’t know…. maybe? Still, it just seems like such a departure… I don’t like it,’ said Jane.

‘I don’t blame you. Plus it doesn’t match up with the second trilogy. I hate that part,’ muttered Sam.

‘Wait… don’t tell me. I’ll find out when we watch the next trilogy, right?’ snickered Bucky.

‘Guess that’s the party line, Buck,’ laughed Steve.

Bucky smiled at Steve and Steve caught his gaze, his own smile broadening in response.

Bruce looked at the two of them and grinned as well.

‘Are you two flirting again?’ demanded Tony.

‘Maybe,’ said Steve, chuckling as Tony rolled his eyes.

‘It’s not like they aren’t in a relationship or anything,’ pointed out Scott.

‘My virgin eyes…. seeing two old guys making moves on each other,’ continued Tony while Wanda giggled.

Bucky slanted a smile at her, waggled his eyebrows at Steve and leaned forward.

‘Hey!!! Hey, none of that, none of that!’ yelped Tony while Wanda’s shoulders shook with laughter.

Steve snickered and leaned forward as well, kissing Bucky gently on his lips.

‘There. That enough excitement for you, old timer?’ asked Steve.

‘Psssh. My ticker can handle it. Don’t think Tony’s is up for it, though,’ answered Bucky.

‘That was…. that was a gross insult to my surgeon’s competence and my amazing recovery skills,’ said Tony, winking at Wanda.

Bucky leaned back and sighed. ‘OK, so that was the prequels, right?’

‘That was them,’ said Sam grimly. ‘Done and done with all of that mess.’

‘Here’s a little history. Star Wars started in the middle… episodes four, five, and six. Then came episodes one, two, and three. Then they did episode seven… and then they did a stand alone which is the next movie,’ explained Scott.

‘I love this next one,’ said Sam. ‘It’s my second favourite one, ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ being my favourite one.’

‘This was the newest release…. the next movie up is episode eight,’ said Bruce. ‘It’s going to be in the theatres in December.’

‘So we can all see it when it comes out!’ exclaimed Bucky.

‘Sure can. You’ll be up to date by then. It’ll be fun,’ said Sam.

‘OK. So when do we want to watch this next one?’ asked Bucky.

‘How about a few days from now? I have a conference I need to attend and a group to run. Plus I promised my auntie I’d stop by because she says she forgot what my face looks like,’ suggested Sam with a rueful grin.

‘Don’t want to upset your Auntie,’ agreed Bucky. ‘A few days from now sounds great to me.’

Everyone else agreed and set up a date. Bucky moved over to make room for Steve to sit down next to him.

‘Are you enjoying the movies so far?’ asked Steve. He took Bucky’s hand and interlaced his fingers with Bucky’s, squeezing gently.

‘Yeah… I am. Seems like everyone’s talking pretty good, too, Rogers,’ commented Bucky.

‘Seems like it. Guess we’ll see what happens but so far it’s been working out all right,’ said Steve, leaning his head back and closing his eyes.

‘We should get you to bed, old man. Don’t want you snoozing on the job tomorrow,’ teased Bucky.

‘Sure. But let’s just sit here for a moment. I’m enjoying the quiet,’ murmured Steve.

‘All right,’ said Bucky. He closed his eyes and synced his breathing to Steve’s, feeling his heartbeat slow down, feeling as though he was sinking down, a stone into a pool.

It wasn’t until the next day that Steve and Bucky both saw the photo that Clint had snapped of them, sound asleep.


	5. Rogue One or In Which Everyone Loves Chirrut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chirrut is the very best.
> 
> Garth Brooks sing offs are a thing.
> 
> Nobody wants to take on Vader.

‘Sam, you gotta be one happy man tonight,’ commented Bucky as he sat down next to Sam.

‘Oh?’ asked Sam, raising his eyebrows. He made room for Wanda, who nestled into the corner of the couch and rested her feet against Sam’s thighs.

‘Yeah…. you said way back when we first started this, that you really liked this movie,’ reminded Bucky.

‘Oh, yeah…. yes, this movie, this movie is the best movie…. well, OK. ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ is the best movie to me…. but this movie is second best…. even though it tears my damn heart out,’ said Sam.

‘It does that to me, too,’ said Bruce. ‘It’s hard to watch because there’s just so much… everything. Everything in this movie.’

‘Sorry’ said Steve, ‘But we want you to watch it and then we can discuss it or discuss it as we watch it, like we usually do.’.

‘How about you, Stevie? Is it your favourite movie?’ asked Bucky.

‘I’m with Sam,’ said Steve. ‘I like ‘Empire’ because the soundtrack and the plot are amazing. But this movie is a close second. I think you’ll see why when we watch it.’

‘This movie can be triggering, though,’ added Natasha. ‘They did their research and wanted the feel of Iwo Jima. I’d say that did a damn good job replicating it.’

‘Yeah. We were freezing our asses off and they were having heat stroke down there. Two extremes,’ muttered Bucky.

‘We can stop the movie at any time,’ reassured Steve. ‘I don’t want you to feel like you have to watch something even though it’s traumatic for you.’

‘This is supposed to be fun,’ added Scott. ‘So far, it’s been a lot of fun. Not as nostalgic but that’s for the original trilogy. I’ll have a lot of feelings when we start those.’

‘I agree,’ said Clint. ‘I remember seeing ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ and ‘Return of the Jedi’ when I was young. I was in another world when I saw those movies. They helped me get out of my head.’

‘Just as you should have been,’ commented Tony. ‘It’s supposed to be a soap opera, right? Like one of those grand stories stretched out over time. And I think these movies pretty much hit their target.’

‘Let’s start this one… I wanna see what all the ruckus is about,’ said Bucky, grinning at Sam who mouthed, ‘ruckus’ and scrunched his nose at him.

Bucky watched the opening scene. ‘So he’s hiding out with his family.’

‘Yeah. He’s a scientist, and he ran from the Empire,’ explained Sam.

‘And now they found him,’ said Bucky, flatly.

‘Yeah…. now they found him,’ repeated Sam.

‘This isn’t going to end well. A man who is willing to leave everything like that doesn’t want to be found,’ said Bucky.

‘What? Despite all the perks of being part of the Empire?’ asked Clint sarcastically.

‘You would think these evil organizations would try to be different, but no, they’re all the same. There better be a real good medical plan for this nonsense,’ commented Scott. ‘Like, everything better be paid 100%, including dental and vision.’

Bucky smiled slightly at Scott. ‘Hydra didn’t exactly have the best medical plan, just saying.’

‘Don’t disappoint me, Bucky,’ groaned Scott. ‘I like to cling to my illusions.’

‘What’s that…. that crystal?’ asked Bucky, watching as Lyra tied the necklace around Jyn’s neck.

‘Plot point,’ said Tony, dryly. ‘What? Like it isn’t? Come on.’

‘Tony…’ protested Bruce.

‘Ok Ok. That is a Kyber crystal. Small spoiler…. Jedis use kyber crystals to power their lightsabers,’ said Tony. ‘A Jedi completes their training when they can make their own lightsaber.’

‘Where did you read that?’ asked Sam, intrigued.

‘The novelization of ‘Return of the Jedi’ mentioned it,’ said Tony.

‘Huh. I should read that book,’ said Sam.

‘It had a lot of information in it that the movie, naturally , couldn’t fit in. The thoughts of the characters and all. I think you’d enjoy it. I can loan it to you, if you’d like,’ offered Tony. 

‘Thanks, that would be great,’ answered Sam.

‘Was Lyra a Jedi?’ asked Bucky.

‘No…. but she might have followed the Jedi way,’ answered Bruce. ‘You’ll see.’

‘I can see her mother in her face,’ pointed out Bucky. ‘See? Her eyes and the shape of her face.’

‘Yeah…. you’re right. She looks like her mom,’ agreed Sam.

‘Who is _that_???’ exclaimed Bucky, leaning forward to study K-2SO.

‘You’ll find out. It’s apparently a rescue mission,’ said Scott, smirking. ‘That’s K-2SO.’

‘Thanks for parroting what he said, pal,’ drawled Bucky.

Bucky threw a pillow that accurately hit Scott in the side of his head. He gloated happily when Scott listed over and fell out of his chair.

Sam squeaked quietly and Bucky looked over at him. ‘What?’

‘Can’t tell you…. just…. cameo!’ breathed Sam, staring raptly at the screen.

Bucky watched as a beautiful swan-necked woman with red hair listened to everyone around her.

‘I’ll keep her in mind, then,’ said Bucky. ‘Oh…. this Draven guy is up to no good.’

‘Cassian is given the dirty work/ He’s a spy/ You saw what he did and what he’s willing to do,’ murmured Natasha. She and Bucky exchanged looks that spoke volumes.

‘Jyn’s going to lose her shit when she finds out,’ warned Bucky. ‘That’s her dad, you know.’

‘You think?’ asked Bruce. ‘Despite everything, she still loves him.’

‘And Jedha is a…. it’s a holy city for the Jedi, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘I think so,’ answered Clint. ‘It really isn’t explained in this movie but I think it’s where the Jedi gathered…. maybe they started here.’

‘Interesting that the Empire is here,’ said Bucky. He watched, his expression growing puzzled. ‘What are they taking?’ he asked.

‘Kyber crystals,’ answered Steve. 

‘All of those? That’s what they need for whatever they built, isn’t it?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yup. Nice commentary on colonialism without actually saying anything about it,’ said Sam. ‘None of these people want these Imperial stormtroopers here.’

‘I wouldn’t. They’re taking stuff that isn’t theirs to take,’ put in Natasha. ‘And I imagine they’re terrorizing the people who live here as well.’

‘Is that a Jedi?’ asked Bucky. ‘No, that can’t be a Jedi…. who is that?’ He stared with fascination at Chirrut.

‘You think he’s cool,’ said Scott. ‘Look who his companion is. It’s like you but different.’

‘They both look pretty badass,’ said Bucky. ‘Ohhh…. this is going to get good.’

‘Nothing like an ambush to get the plot moving,’ agreed Scott. 

They all watched as the fight in Jedha unfolded.

‘Holy shit,’ breathed Bucky, watching as Chirrut moved in a blur of motion.

‘Do you think you could take him?’ asked Clint.

‘He’s blind, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yup,’ affirmed Clint.

‘Nope. He’d drop me,’ said Bucky. ‘I’ve never seen someone move like that before. Not like that.’

‘You moved pretty damn fast in DC,’ pointed out Sam.

Bucky nodded. ‘But I could see. Not sure how I’d do without my eyes.’

‘But what if you were trained like that?’ asked Wanda. ‘What if you had no vision and were trained like Chirrut?’

‘Uh…. well, I don’t have the Force so I still say he’d probably kick my ass,’ said Bucky.

‘There we go…. we could spend the whole night debating whether or not Chirrut would kick Bucky’s ass,’ laughed Wanda. ‘I think it’d be a draw.’

‘Might,’ agreed Bruce. ‘But Chirrut has the Force on his side.’

‘Oh, god…. “I am one with the Force and the Force is with me”... stop, Bruce, I’m having feels,’ protested Sam, clutching his chest.

‘Oh… wow…. so that’s Jyn’s rescuer. He looks like a king,’ murmured Bucky.

‘Yeah. A mad king. Like Lear or something,’ said Bruce. ‘He has been through too much and he’s about had it. See?’

‘Yeah. Shell shocked…. battle weary… all of that,’ agreed Steve. ‘He’s seen horrible things and done horrible things. Remember, he separated himself from the Rebellion because he felt they weren’t doing enough.’

‘Sometimes you got to get your hands dirty to get the job done,’ said Bucky.

‘You think so?’ asked Bruce.

‘Look, idealism is all well and good but when you’re faced with the reality of a situation and choices, then you take the hard choice, sometimes,’ said Bucky. 

‘Isn’t there a different way?’ asked Wanda. ‘I mean, I know that if I had the choice, I would do my best not to lose myself.’

‘I think most people feel that way and most act that way, but sometimes, situations happen,’ said Scott, gently. ‘Everyone has a breaking point.’

‘Ohhh…. look at her face,’ breathed Wanda. She gazed at Jyn who was staring at the hologram of her father with love and need.

‘He engineered a flaw in the thing he was forced to help build. Hah!’ exclaimed Bucky. ‘Clever clever man.’

‘Just when you think you have trapped someone into doing something they don’t want to do, they find a way around things, anyway. That’s very clever,’ said Steve. ‘Gotta hand it to him…. he pulled the wool over their eyes.’

‘Didn’t think you’d be OK with something like that,’ said Clint.

Steve shrugged one shoulder. ‘If I’m being told to do something and am given no choice but to obey…. you bet I’m going to think of ways to sabotage it, anyway. Especially something like building the Death Star.’

‘So that pilot…. that Bodhi Rook...he was an Imperial pilot?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah… he flew shuttles…. he risked his life to get that information to Saw. Looks like he’s going to be rescued,’ answered Tony.

‘They better hurry their ass up, then. That Death Star isn’t going to wait for them to get off the planet,’ pointed out Bucky.

‘No…. and besides, this fulfills another goal of the Empire, to destroy the holy city of Jedha, where the Jedi once learned. That’s got to please Vader and Palpatine to no end,’ added Scott.

‘I didn’t even think of that,’ said Sam. ‘Well, hell. Guess they get to check that off their bucket list.’

‘How awful for the city. No one is going to escape that,’ said Wanda. She watched as the beam came down and the destruction began.

‘Aw, hell. Saw stayed behind…. but what a badass!’ exclaimed Clint. ‘That’s right. Look at him. He’s going out on his terms.’

‘What did I tell you? He was a king in his own way,’ said Bucky, nodding decisively.

‘And now they’re on their way to rescue Jyn’s father? Whose idea is it to rescue him?’ asked Bucky.

‘Well, Jyn believes it’s a rescue mission, anyway,’ said Bruce.

‘Here’s where it’s going to get messy. Cassian has orders to kill Galen, remember?’ asked Clint.

‘Yeah. Wait until Jyn finds out. That’s going to not end well,’ said Scott.

They watched as events unfolded on Eadu. 

‘Well, shit,’ muttered Bucky as Jyn cradled her father’s head.

‘At least Cassian didn’t kill him,’ pointed out Scott.

Bruce shook his head. ‘That’s small comfort, seeing as they wanted to get Galen out alive so he could talk to the Rebellion about what he did.’

‘So now we have a ship full of survivors from Jehda. And they’re headed back to the Rebel base…. without proof of Jyn’s father’s deception except from her. Let’s take bets on anyone believing her, shall we?’ asked Scott.

‘Why you always got to be the one who brings us down?’ teased Natasha, bumping her shoulder against Scott’s with a smile on her face.

‘I’m not. I’m just the realist of the group,’ said Scott.

‘You are the most optimistic person I’ve ever met,’ protested Sam. ‘When we were all on that awful prison in the middle of nowhere, you were the one who kept our spirits up.’

‘True. Although I probably could have done without Scott and Clint having a sing-off. How do you both know so many country-western songs, anyway?’ asked Wanda.

‘Way too many,’ said Clint. ‘That’s all most of the roadies listened to in the circus. We’d tune into a country station and set up the tents. I’d fall asleep to country music. I have pretty much the entire catalogue of country music memorized from the mid-eighties, I’m telling you.’

‘That explains a lot. There’s a decent amount of Johnny Cash and Kenny Rogers in your songs,’ said Scott.

‘And Garth Brooks. Let’s not forget the mighty mighty sing-off that was Garth Brooks songs night,’ said Sam, rolling his eyes.

Wanda giggled. ‘I think that was a draw. I’m sure the guards appreciated you singing ‘Friends in Low Places’ about ten times each.’

Bucky laughed and then watched as Jyn and the small group of Rebel soldiers went on the transport ship.

‘Ohhh! Call sign!’ exclaimed Scott. ‘This is where they get that!’

‘Didn’t you see this movie before?’ asked Natasha.

‘Once, and I was distracted through most of it…. missed some relevant bits. Like this part,’ said Scott. ‘Good for Bodhi!’

‘And they’re off…. and oh sweet Jesus, there is Vader!’ exclaimed Sam.

‘They made him even more terrifying…. just _look_ at him!’ pointed out Clint.

‘Hah…. Vader has a dark sense of humor,’ said Bucky. ‘’Choke on your ambition,’’ my ass. I’d take what I got and I’d get the hell out of there.’

‘Would anyone here want to confront Darth Vader?’ asked Scott. ‘Just out of curiosity.’

‘I say no,’ said Tony, immediately. ‘I like living.’

‘I’m with Tony. I’m not sure the Other Guy could handle Darth Vader,’ said Bruce.

‘Not if I don’t have to,’ said Natasha. ‘It’d be interesting to take him on, though.’

‘No thank you,’ said Jane. She’d been silent, watching the movie and listening to everyone speak, smiling and leaning against Thor’s side. ‘I wouldn’t survive very long against him. Look at what he did to his wife.’

‘True,’ agreed Thor. ‘He was violent towards the one he claimed to love more than anything else. I wouldn’t stake my life on his stability.’

‘I wouldn’t say the cat’s exactly stable,’ pointed out Scott. ‘After all, he was mutilated and maimed by his master and then ended up in a volcano pit. That probably didn’t help.’

‘Yup. I wouldn’t want to deal with him unless I had to,’ said Sam. ‘I’m with Tony on this one. Living is good.’

‘I could take him,’ said Wanda, quietly. ‘But I’d rather not have anything to do with him. He might have the power of the Force and the Dark Side and all…. but he’s still a man.’

‘Meaning you could drop him,’ said Jane with a grin.

‘Yeah… I could drop him. But I’d have to be quick about it. He could Force choke me into unconsciousness or throw me against the wall,’ pointed out Wanda.

‘’Well, unless I can pick him off from a distance and he doesn’t use the Force to fuck with my arrow, I’m going to bow out,’ said Clint. ‘He’d Force drop me and that would be that.’

‘Tic Tac could take him. Be very small and turn off his life support or something,’ said Sam.

Scott snorted. ‘Maybe. And then he’d squish me with the Force.’

‘What about you, Steve?’ asked Bucky. ‘You think you can take on Darth Vader?’

‘Maybe not by myself, but maybe we could if we all worked together as a team,’ said Steve.

‘Well, yeah. As a team, we’d be fine. But one on one? I think it’d be a mess,’ said Bucky.

‘Maybe so. But we’re used to super villains…. and Darth Vader’s just another super villain at the end of the day,’ said Steve, thoughtfully.

They all watched the movie in silence for a few minutes. 

‘Looks like the calm before the storm,’ said Bucky, watching as Jyn’s people made their way around Scarif.

‘It’s going to get ugly,’ cautioned Wanda. ‘Just… let us know if it’s too much for you.’

‘Thank you,’ said Bucky. ‘It’s a movie. I’ll be OK.’

‘I wasn’t OK and I didn’t go through what you went through…. it’s… well, you’ll see,’ said Scott.

‘Oh shit…’ muttered Bruce as the explosions started and the Imperial troops began responding to the invasion.

Bucky watched in fascination as Jyn, Cassian, and K-2SO made their way into the installation. ‘Looks like K-2 is more than just a pretty face,’ he commented as the droid uploaded information from another droid.

‘And _now_ Rebel forces decide to join the party,’ said Sam, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

‘Always late to the fun stuff!’ crowed Scott. ‘These guys gotta get it together!’

‘They’re not getting off this island,’ said Wanda, softly. She watched as the AT-AT’s came into view, firing down at the small band of rebels.

‘I’m pretty sure they all knew this could end this way,’ said Clint. ‘They knew the risks.’

‘We all know the risks going into situations. There might come a time when a few of us might not come out alive,’ said Tony. ‘I’m hoping that day is a long time in coming.’

‘Ohhh…. he really loved his daughter,’ said Jane. ‘He named the information ‘stardust,’ after her. That’s…’ she blinked her eyes as tears formed. ‘That’s beautiful.’

‘He never forgot her and never stopped missing her,’ added Scott, blinking back tears of his own. He smiled and added, ‘That’s how I feel about my daughter. She’s wonderful and amazing.... I’d do the exact same thing Galen did. The exact same, if I were in his situation.’

‘And now it’s getting personal,’ said Bucky, clenching his fists as he watched K-2SO sacrifice himself for Cassian and Jyn. ‘Damn it…. curse my feelings for a droid!’

Steve laughed. ‘Yeah… I have feelings for everyone involved. You’re not alone, Buck.’

‘Master switch…. of course the damn master switch is out there…. no, Chirrut!’ exclaimed Bucky. He half rose and watched as Chirrut made his way to the console.

‘I don’t like this movie anymore, Steve,’ muttered Bucky, watching as Chirrut died in Baze’s arms. 

‘Yeah. I hear you,’ said Steve. ‘Look at Baze…. he loved his companion.’

‘You think they were a couple?’ asked Natasha.

‘They could have been,’ said Bruce. ‘Nothing says they aren’t.’

‘I think you can interpret it however you want,’ said Thor. ‘From platonic brothers-in-arms to lovers and everything in between. What we do know for sure is their bond is real and it’s close. They love each other.’

‘Loved,’ said Bucky, sourly. ‘At least Baze went out on his terms. That’s how I want to do it, too. My way. If it’s going to be the end, then I’m going to do it the way I want to and I’m going to take as many of those jerks with me as I can.’

‘That’s a honourable way to die,’ said Thor. ‘I will remember that when Ragnarok is upon us. I won’t be afraid to die…. not if I’m protecting the ones I love.’

‘Bodhi….’ said Scott. He shook his head as the grenade went off.

‘Wait… was he killed?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah,’ said Scott.

‘OK, this movie isn’t what I was expecting,’ said Bucky.

‘What were you expecting?’ asked Sam. 

‘The other movies had their moments but nothing like this. It’s much more realistic and there is more at stake, here, I feel,’ said Bucky.

‘What, the creation of Darth Vader wasn’t important?’ asked Wanda.

‘Nooo…. that’s obviously important, but what’s happening here is something I can relate to more…. I understand that the prequels set everything up. This story, though, it really moves things forward. It doesn’t hold anything back,’ answered Bucky.

‘Yeah. Now you know why it’s my second favourite,’ said Sam.

‘Sure do. Everything is just more real in a way. I like how this movie is so different from the other ones,’ said Bucky.

‘And she transmitted the information! Yes!’ hooted Clint.

‘Whoa whoa whoa!!!! You don’t want her holding a grudge against you,’ laughed Bucky, watching as Cassian stopped Jyn from going after Krennic.

‘Do you blame her, though?’ asked Natasha. ‘He was personally responsible for killing her mother and for taking her father away.’

‘I don’t blame her at all. I don’t know if I would have stopped her if I were there,’ said Bucky.

‘You would have kicked him right over the edge?’ asked Clint.

‘Yup. Punted him right over,’ said Bucky.

Scott chortled and Sam’s mouth twitched up into a reluctant smile.

‘So is anyone else still alive?’ asked Wanda.

‘I… I think it’s just Cassian and Jyn,’ responded Steve. ‘Maybe some fighters were able to get out of there but everyone else is dead. Chirrut, Baze, and Bodhi.’

‘Don’t forget K-2SO,’ reminded Bucky.

‘Yeah. So it’s just Cassian and Jyn now,’ said Scott.

‘And that’s going to change pretty quick. Here comes the Death Star,’ pointed out Bucky. He leaned forward and smiled as Krennic lifted his head and saw his fate right in front of him.

‘I changed my mind. This is good,’ said Bucky.

‘Really wanna make it hurt, huh, Buck?’ asked Steve.

‘You know it,’ said Bucky simply.  
‘What irony…. if he’d let things be, he could be on the Death Star. Instead…. he’s going to be killed by the very thing he wanted credit for. Oh, delicious, delicious irony,’ cackled Tony.

‘And there it goes…. OK, rebel ships, get the hell out of there!’ yelled Scott.

‘You got the plans, leave now!’ added Clint.

‘They’re going, they’re going….’ grumbled Sam.

‘Oh, no…’ Bucky leaned forward, almost falling off the couch. ‘Isn’t that Vader’s ship?’

‘Yeah. It is,’ said Tony.

They watched as Vader boarded the Rebel ship and proceeded to massacre the rebel soldiers.

‘Remember that whole discussion we had about Darth Vader versus us?’ reminded Bucky.

‘Yeah?’ asked Natasha.

‘This. This is why I say we would get our asses handed to us like cheese on a cracker,’ replied Bucky.

‘Where did you come up with that one?’ asked Tony.

‘I made it up. You love it, admit it,’ teased Bucky. He shot a smirk at Tony who rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

‘Wait until I get you in that podracer tomorrow morning…. revenge shall be mine,’ said Tony.

‘And…. and there she is!’ squealed Sam.

Bucky turned to see a young woman in a white dress with the disc in her hands. He squinted at the screen and said, ‘She looks familiar…. I can’t quite place her.’

‘You will,’ assured Sam. ‘You’ll know who she is in the next movie.’

‘I got a proposition,’ said Scott. ‘Since we’re all staying overnight anyway, let’s put in episode four. It really makes a lot more sense after seeing this movie. What do you all think?’

‘Let’s go for it!’ agreed Clint while Natasha nodded her approval.

‘I’m OK with back to back movies,’ said Wanda.

Thor looked at Jane who smiled and said, ‘Why not?’

‘I’m in,’ said Steve and Sam whooped happily.

‘I don’t have anything going on early tomorrow,’ said Bruce. ‘And it would be great continuity.’

‘Sure. Sounds good to me,’ said Tony. ‘We can push back testing the podracer tomorrow.’

‘What do you think, Bucky?’ asked Scott.

‘Yeah. Let’s see how they fit together. I really liked this one, though. Sam, this is my favourite so far,’ said Bucky.

‘We’ll see how you feel after watching ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ and all. But I don’t blame you for choosing this one,’ said Sam.

‘All right. Next movie in about ten minutes. Let’s take a break and get more popcorn and whatever,’ suggested Steve.

‘I gotta go pee,’ announced Scott. ‘I was holding it and I can’t hold it anymore.’

Bucky snorted. ‘Go on, get! But hurry up! I want to see what happens next!’


	6. Star Wars: A New Hope or In Which Talking Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's all fun and games until Tony is reminded of the Accords and what happened after...
> 
> And Bucky has boundaries about Luke and Leia, thank you very much....

‘OK. Here we go…. time to begin our next movie,’ said Scott, settling back down onto a chair. He had a bottle of root beer in one hand and a sandwich in the other.

‘Getting comfortable, are we?’ teased Clint. He was setting a plate of sandwiches down on a side table and held two bottles of root beer between his fingers.

‘Damn right I am. I love the original trilogies,’ said Scott.

‘The original trilogies are what most people our age remember,’ said Bruce. ‘The prequels came out way later, and of course, the new movies came out within the last couple of years. But the original trilogy…. they’re old.’

‘Yeah. ‘Star Wars’, well, the first movie, originally, came out in 1977. It totally changed the way people saw movies and made movies. It wasn’t anything anyone had ever seen before,’ said Tony. ‘I remember seeing it and was like, ‘holy shit. Who got into my dreams?’ I was astounded.’

‘Even us circus folks, we were able to see the movie at a drive-in theater…. that was something else, too. Anyone remember going to those?’ asked Clint.

‘I loved drive-in theaters. Could put all your friends in a car and get in cheap…. and make out with your date, too,’ said Scott.

‘I saw the first movie and then had to wait impatiently for the second and the third movie. It seemed to take forever,’ said Sam. ‘We all were waiting impatiently for the two movies after the original ‘Star Wars.’. We knew what to expect and we couldn’t wait to see what happened next.’

‘That would have been great,’ said Steve. ‘Remember watching those old serials, Buck? The cliffhangers and everything each week? When I first saw the first ‘Star Wars’ movie, I felt like I was watching a ‘Buck Rogers’ movie. I felt like a kid again.’

‘I’m looking forward to it. Let’s watch the movie!’ urged Bucky.

They all cheered at the opening scene and the familiar music filled the air. Bucky watched as the small Rebel ship fled the huge Star Destroyer.

‘Whoa…. so this is the first movie people ever saw,’ said Bucky.

‘Yeah. Look at that opening sequence. You got that Rebel ship - remember, the one that has the secret plans to destroy the Death Star - and it’s going across the screen, and it’s not a small ship…. but then you see what’s chasing it,’ said Bruce.

‘And it seems to go on forever,’ breathed Bucky. He watched as the ship was boarded by Imperial forces.

‘Yeah. And now you see why we wanted to watch this right after watching ‘Rogue One,’’ said Bruce.

‘I do…. these guys just got away from Scarif and now they’re captured by Darth Vader. They’ve got to be scared,’ said Bucky.

‘I would be. Put yourself in their place,’ said Steve.

‘If I knew my friends died handing off that disc, I’d do my best to protect it and pass it on but I’d be terrified,’ said Scott.

‘I do get scared on missions,’ said Natasha. ‘I know that I have to succeed because there are people’s lives at stake. I have to push my fear down, though.’

‘So do I,’ said Clint. ‘We’re in some pretty scary situations. I can’t afford to freeze because I’m afraid.’

‘Do you think they can somehow get past Vader?’ asked Wanda. ‘Those transmissions need to get to the Rebellion. And people paid the highest price for getting that information.’

‘Darth Vader isn’t going to let that happen. He knows what’s on this ship. He’ll tear it apart and kill everyone on board,’ said Bucky. ‘That’s what I would do, if that were my mission. I’d get those tapes back.’

‘He’s trying,’ said Sam. ‘Ohhh…’ Sam sat up and watched as Princess Leia recorded her message with a willing R2D2.

‘That’s the same lady from the end of ‘Rogue One’....exclaimed Bucky. She’s the one who they wanted to get the tapes to!’ 

‘Remember in ‘Rogue One’ when Senator Organa and that lady were talking and she wanted to know if the contact could be trusted?’ asked Scott. ‘This is his adopted daughter.’

‘Wow,’ said Bucky, his eyes wide. ‘So there’s where those two droids end up. R2D2 would remember everything, right?’

‘Yeah. They didn’t erase his memory… just C3PO’s,’ said Natasha. ‘I have always found that amusing. The one droid that doesn’t communicate in a language humans can easily understand is the one droid who knows and has seen almost everything.’

‘I bet he has some stories,’ said Bucky with a grin.

‘He probably does,’ said Sam.

They watched as Darth Vader interrogated Leia and gave his commands.

‘I was right. He’s going to destroy the ship and everyone on it. They already targeted any escape pods. The droids aren’t life forms so they didn’t destroy that one. Where are they?’ asked Bucky.

Wanda smiled. ‘Well, here’s where the story gets interesting.’

Bucky watched as the droids were captured by Jawas. ‘What the hell is that thing?’ he asked, looking at the huge vehicle.

‘That’s a Sandcrawler. It’s especially made for that environment and to drive through all that sand,’ said Sam.

‘Uh…. is this a farm? In the desert? What do they grow here?’ asked Bucky.

‘This is a farm and this is where Luke lives with his aunt and uncle. They do the best they can,’ answered Tony. ‘Of course, they don’t have the technology I have…. it’s a hard life, there. But they manage.’

‘And this is a moisture farm. They pull moisture from the air with machines,’ added Sam.

‘Wait a minute…. these are the same people that Anakin and Padme visited when he tried to rescue his mom…. and….’ Bucky paused.

‘The shoe drops,’ said Sam with a huge smile.

‘This is where Luke ended up? On this godforsaken planet?’ Bucky demanded.

‘He’s safe here, don’t you think? The Empire isn’t going to look for a child of Anakin Skywalker on a desert outer rim planet,’ pointed out Scott.

‘But Anakin…. I mean, he’d remember this place, wouldn’t he?’ asked Bucky.

‘Good point. You’d think he would remember it but he hated growing up here. And he lost his mother here. I think he chose to forget the planet existed,’ said Natasha.

‘Huh. And here they are with C3PO and R2D2. That’s convenient,’ said Bucky, dryly.

‘It is, yeah. But remember, the prequels and ‘Rogue One’ hadn’t been made yet. It’s like connecting the dots but only backwards,’ reminded Sam.

‘Fair enough. So if I were to watch this movie without any notion of the other stuff…. then it would just be a series of happy coincidences,’ commented Bucky.

‘Yeah. OK, so watch this scene,’ instructed Sam.

Bucky watched as Luke managed to play a portion of the message that Leia had desperately recorded and given to Artoo.

‘That’s got to get him going. ‘Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi…. you’re my only hope’... Luke was just waiting for something like this,’ said Bucky.

‘We know who Obi-Wan is but to Luke…’Wanda trailed off.

‘Luke thinks it’s a so called crazy man who lives in the desert. Wait… _that’s_ where Obi-Wan ends up? Where does Yoda end up, then?’ asked Bucky.

‘That’s a good question there, Buck,’ said Steve. ‘But it’s something you’ll find out in ‘The Empire Strikes Back,’ so we’re not telling you.’.Steve stuck his tongue out at Bucky and blew a raspberry.

Bucky gave him an irritated look, but was soon caught up in the movie again.

‘And he’s gotten himself into trouble. What the hell is that?’ asked Bucky, watching as the Tusken Raider ambushed Luke.

‘A scavenger of the desert. Remember those creatures who kidnapped Anakin’s mother?’ asked Jane.

‘Right. I would have thought Anakin had murdered all of them when he went on his rampage,’ said Bucky.

‘He just murdered one tribe. There are a few different tribes of Sand People on Tatooine,’ explained Wanda.

‘OK. That makes sense. Damn. And there’s Ben Kenobi…. Ben Kenobi? Where did he come up with that name?’ asked Bucky.

‘Dunno,’ said Scott. ‘We know that he exiled himself so that he could learn more from the Force and also to keep an eye on Luke.’

Bucky nodded his head and then watched as Artoo played the entire message for them.

‘So let’s say I watched the movies starting here. I’d have no idea what the Clone Wars were…. or why he was a general…. any of that. On the other hand, it’s interesting information that I would love to know more about,’ said Bucky.

‘And that’s why some people really liked the prequels. It gave a lot of background info that was just hinted at in the movies,’ said Steve.

‘Jar Jar Binks,’ muttered Sam.

‘And there’s that, but the people who loved the prequels loved seeing the Clone Wars and how Anakin became Darth Vader,’ continued Steve.

‘That’s why we argued about how to watch the movies,’ said Bucky, smiling. ‘There’s the timeline way which we are doing and the way the movies originally came out, which is how a lot of people saw them. I can see the arguments for both.’.

‘I like the timeline way because I can see the stuff that was hinted at in the original trilogy and I know the whole story behind it because I watched the prequels first. I like connecting all those dots,’ said Steve.

‘I like watching them in the order they came out because it reminds me of how I felt when I saw them in the theater,’ said Jane.

‘See, that’s something I didn’t think about,’ admitted Steve. ‘That’s a really great reason to watch that way.’

‘Well, to be fair, you were pretty much sleeping during that time,’ said Jane, apologetically.

‘True. I think if I’d been able to see them as they came out, I’d watch them that way for nostalgia’s sake, too,’ said Steve, sharing a smile with Jane.

‘Oh, so _that’s_ how Obi-Wan explains about Luke’s father. That’s true but it isn’t true in a way,’ said Bucky. 

Sam sent a warning look at Tony, who was about to say something. Tony sighed and fiddled with his tablet instead.

‘And there’s Anakin’s lightsaber,’ said Bruce.

‘Right…. because Obi-Wan took it with him when he left Anakin there to die. Who wasn’t a little disturbed by that? Because I was disturbed by that,’ said Scott.  
‘I think Obi-Wan thought that Anakin was going to die… and he just was done. Heartsick and done. He couldn’t redeem him. He didn’t want him around Padme. So he decided to leave him there,’ said Clint.

‘I suppose Obi-Wan knew Anakin best. It still bothers me,’ said Bucky.

‘What was the name of the other baby?’ asked Bucky.

‘Leia…. Padme named her Leia,’ answered Jane.

‘Oh, come on! So that’s why I should have known her from ‘Rogue One’.... she was the baby that the Organas adopted on Alderaan, right? And she was a princess at birth so… Princess Leia…. Senator Leia…. and Darth Vader never knew she was his daughter, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘Nope. He had no idea. Obi-Wan wanted both babies hidden as well as he could,’ answered Jane. ‘He wanted to keep them safe from Vader and the Emperor. After all, Vader was exterminating all the Jedi he could find. He hunted them down for years.’

‘How many were left?’ asked Bucky. 

‘Officially? Two. Obi-Wan and Yoda,’ said Jane.

‘Oh no…. Luke, don’t go haring off!’ exclaimed Clint.

They watched as Luke sped back home and found the remains of his aunt and uncle. Clint shook his head and Bucky frowned as Luke fought tears.

‘That’s rough…. and he’s going back to Obi-Wan. Oh, wait. That’s Obi-Wan’s brother, isn’t it?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yup,’ replied Natasha. ‘Obi-Wan lost the last of his family as well.’

‘Well, hell,’ said Bucky. ‘This had its dark moments as well. Not as much as ‘Rogue One’ but geez.’

‘Now they’re going to go to Alderaan to bring the stolen files that Jyn and Cassian got to Senator Organa, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘And learn how to be a Jedi,’ said Wanda. ‘He wants to start training.’

‘Isn’t he kind of old? I mean, padawans started as children, right? That’s what we saw in the prequels,’ said Bucky.

‘It’s not like Obi-Wan has a choice. It’s Luke he needs to train and it would have been easier if Luke were younger, but just think if Vader sensed him through the Force,’ pointed out Wanda.

‘Oh - right. That would have been over before it’d begun… or Vader could have turned Luke to the Dark Side of the Force,’ said Bucky. ‘Obi-Wan had to wait.’

‘Yeah. Oh, my favourite scene in the movie!’ exclaimed Wanda.

Bucky smiled as Obi-Wan tricked the stormtroopers into believing that C3PO and Artoo were ‘not the droids they were looking for.’

‘Jedi mind powers…. useful,’ he commented.

‘And now the scene that blew everyone’s minds,’ said Sam with a grin. 

They all watched as Luke entered Mos Eisley’s cantina and Bucky laughed to see the various beings in the bar.

‘This must have been something else when it first came out!’ he said. ‘Wow! Look at all those different creatures…. there are so many! And they’re hanging out at this space bar. That’s amazing!’

‘It was. People were freaking out because it was something they’d never seen before,’ said Sam. ‘Of course, now these aliens look a little old, but I think they hold up pretty good,’ said Sam.

‘Not too bad,’ agreed Bucky. 

‘Hey… look at who that is!’ pointed out Scott.

‘Is that… is that Chewbacca?’ asked Bucky with a grin.

‘Looks like it,’ said Scott.

‘Sweet,’ commented Bucky. ‘Wonder what he’s been up to all this time.’

‘Hanging out with the pilot of the ship who is going to get the gang to Alderaan, apparently,’ answered Scott.

‘’Do you think Obi-Wan remembered Chewbacca?’ asked Bucky.

‘I bet he did,’ said Wanda. ‘They spent a decent amount of time with the Wookiees.’

‘Don’t forget that they saved Yoda, too. Well, Yoda saved himself for the most part, but still,’ said Jane.

‘I love Chewbacca,’ said Sam. ‘He’s probably my favourite one in the whole mess of folks in the ‘Star Wars’ universe.’

‘Hey… did anyone catch the two guys at the bar? The ones who picked the fight with Luke?’ asked Scott.

‘Yeah…. and then Obi-Wan finished it,’ said Wanda.

‘What’s with this cutting off people’s limbs? Is this a Jedi thing?’ asked Bucky.

Sam and Clint exchanged looks but kept their mouths shut.

Bucky laughed. ‘Weren’t those two in ‘Rogue One’? Those two guys? That’s clever!’

‘At least they made it out of Jedha,’ said Wanda.

‘True. Oh, good going, Luke…. piss off the pilot,’ said Tony, dryly.

‘It _is_ a lot of money, though, right?’ asked Thor.

‘Probably… but they’re desperate and so…. there we go! People get shafted regularly because of that,’ said Natasha, shrugging her shoulders.

‘Here’s one of my favourite scenes,’ said Sam.

‘Oh, yeah! This is iconic,’ said Bruce. ‘In which Luke gets his ass handed to him by a floating sphere.’

Bucky snickered as he watched Luke attempt to and finally succeed in beating the fighter sphere. ‘Hey, Tony… how difficult would it be to make a lightsaber?’

‘Not sure. I’d have to look into it,’ said Tony. ‘You wanna see if you have the Force?’

‘I wouldn’t mind another weapon that can cut through anything,’ said Bucky.

‘See, Han is more my speed,’ said Tony as they watched Han scoff at the idea of the Force. ‘He’s a realist and so am I. I would totally be Han Solo if I were in Star Wars.’

‘I can see you as Han,’ said Wanda. 

‘Oh, let’s not do this yet,’ entreated Sam. ‘We got to watch at least the entire original trilogy before we start bickering who’s who in the ‘Star Wars’ universe.’

‘Fine. But I’m still Han,’ said Tony.

‘I hate this scene,’ murmured Wanda.

‘I don’t like it, either,’ agreed Jane. 

They watched as Grand Moff Tarkin interrogated Leia with Darth Vader standing behind her.

‘Ohhh…. she’s bluffing, isn’t she?’ asked Bucky. ‘They’re threatening to blow up her home planet and she’s giving them another name instead.’

‘Well, she’s got to do something,’ said Jane. ‘She’s hoping to save her planet and her people.’

‘I don’t think it’s going to work,’ said Bucky. ‘They just needed an excuse to take out a powerful ally to the Rebellion.’

They watched in silence as the Death Star blew up Alderaan. 

‘Ok, that kind of sucked,’ said Bucky. ‘Was her family on there?’

‘Yeah. Everyone in her family was on there,’ said Wanda.

‘And here comes the Millennium Falcon…. that’s such a kick-ass name for a ship!’ exclaimed Scott.

‘I think Obi-Wan is going to faint,’ said Bucky. ‘I’d faint if I felt all those people dying. They’d better get out of there, too. That Death Star is still probably around.’

‘Too late,’ said Clint as they watched the ship get pulled into the Death Star on a tractor beam.

‘Well, this isn’t good, is it,’ remarked Bucky. ‘They’re right in the middle of it now.’

‘It isn’t like _we_ don’t know what it’s like to be facing insurmountable odds,’ quipped Tony.

‘True,’ said Thor. ‘But these people are not equipped for this. Sometimes we are almost overpowered because what is against us has many advantages we do not.’

‘Well, yeah. But that doesn’t mean we still don’t fight. Even though the odds might be against us,’ said Tony.

‘That’s kind of our thing, right? We fight and defend those who can’t fight or defend themselves. At least, that’s what I signed up for,’ said Clint.

‘That’s what our original goal was, yes,’ said Bruce, mildly.

Tony narrowed his eyes. ‘Is this how it’s going to come out, then?’

‘What are you talking about?’ asked Natasha.

‘The whole thing with the Accords, with Bucky, with the Raft…. is this where I get my just desserts? Well, go on, then…. let’s get it out,’ said Tony defiantly, raising his chin.

‘What the…. do we need to talk about this _now_?’ asked Scott, exasperated. He glanced at the screen to where Luke was coaxing Han to rescue Leia.

‘We can stop the movie for a moment,’ suggested Sam. ‘If we’re going to talk about it, we can’t be distracted.’

‘Fine. Let’s stop the movie so we can hash this out once and for all,’ said Steve.

‘You can’t tell us all what to do,’ said Tony.

‘I’m not trying to. I’m agreeing with Sam. If this is where we talk about accountability and where things got fucked up, then we should stop the movie, talk it out, and then watch the movie. We wanted to enjoy the movie together. As a team,’ said Steve.

‘No, _you_ wanted us to enjoy the movie together as a team. Like we could go back to where things were before. But we can’t, Rogers,’ said Tony with frustration in his voice. He paused the movie and stared at the screen, where Luke and Han were preparing to go rescue Leia.

‘I know we can’t, Tony. Things got broken, and not just our physical bodies. There’s all this underlying shit that we should talk about, but we haven’t. We’ve danced around it, brought up bits and pieces…. but we haven’t really had a proper talk,’ said Steve.

‘He means a knock-down drag-out fight like him and I used to have back in the day,’ drawled Bucky.

‘What are you talking about?’ asked Steve.

‘Oh, come on, Stevie,’ said Bucky, ‘When you wanted to enlist when you were 90 pounds nothing with your clockwork heart and your wheezing lungs, and I tried to tell you each time that you were making a fool of yourself and wasting your time.’  
Steve stared at Bucky with a frown, folding his arms across his chest. Bucky stared right back, snorting at Steve’s body language.

Or did you forget that?’ asked Bucky.

‘You sure you remember that right? I don’t remember knocking you about,’ said Steve.

Bucky bared his teeth in a facsimile of a smile. ‘Don’t even try to act stupid or like you don’t remember. If I can remember this through all those mind wipes, the least you can do is give me the courtesy of acknowledging it.’

Steve blew his breath out through his nose and rubbed his forehead in agitation. ‘Sorry, Buck. No, you’re right… we did go at each other a few times.’

‘Imagine that…. Steve Rogers has a temper,’ put in Clint, dryly and it broke up the awful tension in the room. Steve’s mouth flickered up in a smile briefly and Bucky snorted in agreement.

‘So what I’m trying to get across is that we can have a proper talk, but this time around there should be some ground rules. Not all of us are in the right mindset for below the belt hitting,’ said Bucky.

‘I wouldn’t do that!’ protested Tony.

‘You wouldn’t mean to,’ said Thor, gently. ‘But you have forgotten yourself when you’ve been angry or hurt or misunderstood. And you’ve said things you tried to make up later. We are all fragile right now from one thing or another.’

Tony nodded. ‘OK…. OK…. you’re right. So what do you suggest?’

‘Sam?’ asked Bucky.

‘Oh, sure. Here’s where I earn my new wings, huh?’ teased Sam. ‘Look, let’s just try not to get personal. This is gonna sound silly, but speak from yourself. Don’t make accusations. Don’t assume anything. Sound good?’

‘That’s a good start,’ agreed Steve, looking to Scott, Clint, Bucky and Wanda. ‘You four up for this?’

‘Well, I had my talk with Tony and Vision already,’ said Wanda. She smiled. ‘But it wouldn’t hurt to finally talk this out. Because I can feel all of you and it’s… distracting from my own grieving time.’

‘The only issue I have is being thrown into that shithole,’ said Scott. He looked at Tony and his eyes were cold and hard. ‘I didn’t know if I’d see my daughter ever again. I’m still getting over that.’

‘I’m sure I’m pretty much where you are with all of this,’ said Clint. ‘I got some additional thoughts as well.’

Bucky shrugged. ‘Tony was being manipulated by Zemo. I don’t have a problem with that. I have a problem with some other things. My thought is we talk about one thing tonight. One big thing. Because I’d really like to watch the movie with all of you.’

‘One big topic tonight and maybe we could hit on some other stuff on other nights?’ asked Steve, looking at everyone else.

‘Yeah…. that’s fair. Otherwise, we’ll never get to the end of the original trilogy and I’d be sad. You don’t want me to be sad,’ said Scott, his eyes twinkling with his usual good cheer.

‘So what should we talk about?’ asked Steve.

‘Let’s talk about the Raft. Let’s talk about being thrown in there by General Ross and being taunted by the guards and wondering if we’d ever see our families again. Can we also talk about how putting Wanda in there with that damn collar around her neck like she was a rabid animal was a fucking shit decision?’ asked Clint, his drawl underlined by something dark.

‘You’re pretty upset about that, aren’t you?’ asked Bruce.

‘Wanda was powerless and could hardly manage on her own. It was… it was like seeing what it must have looked like from the outside when Loki had me under his control…. I thought I was mostly over that, but seeing Wanda, it all came back,’ said Clint, softly.

Natasha put her hand over Clint’s. ‘I’m sorry,’ she said. ‘I… I really am sorry you had to feel that all over again.’

‘I know you are. It damaged things between us, though, Nat. I still need some time,’ said Clint, looking at Natasha without flinching.

Natasha breathed in and exhaled shakily. ‘Fair enough. I’ll be here, though. I can wait.’ She started to move her hand, but Clint turned his over and twined their fingers together.

‘I know. And that helps a lot, Nat. I need time, that’s all… it helped to be at the farm. I worked hard and spent time with my family. But I’m never again going to let Wanda be controlled like that. It’ll get ugly, I guarantee it,’ said Clint, flatly.

‘It won’t happen again,’ said Tony. ‘I made a huge mistake. I can’t speak for Wanda or Vision because that’s not my right, but I can say that I thought I was doing the safe thing for once. Wanda needed protection and she needed to be kept from those who might hurt her or use her. And I thought…. well, I thought wrong.’

‘And the collar?’ asked Clint.

‘I was wrong again, Clint. I knew it would dampen her power. I didn’t know that it would leave her completely defenseless. And you’re right. It was parallel to what happened to you and I owe you an apology. I’m sorry,’ said Tony, hoarsely. 

Clint gazed at Tony and nodded, once. ‘OK. Apology accepted. But I’ll put an arrow in your throat or between your eyes if you ever try something like that again.’

‘Fair enough,’ said Tony, returning Clint’s nod.

‘Now, Tony, I don’t know you at all, really. You got a nice gig here…. have done some good things… got the feeling you have some unfinished business when it comes to your parents but a lot of us do,’ said Scott. He looked at Tony and his eyes changed again. He looked cold and untouchable.

‘But you’ve never been a parent. So you have no idea what it’s like to be in a place where you can’t get out and you don’t know if you’ll ever see your child again. You don’t know if your child is safe. You don’t know if maybe something might happen to you and if it does, will your child ever know? I gotta say,’ and here Scott paused to gather his thoughts.

‘I gotta say that my daughter has pulled me through some of the worst times in my life. She makes me a better person. If I owe anything to anyone, she’s the one I would gladly give all the credit in the world to because it’s her.’

Tony just looked at Scott and waited.

‘Now. I chose to help out Steve and Sam. I chose to sign on and square things up. I won’t place that blame on you because that was my decision and I’ll take the responsibility for it. What I can’t understand is for someone as brilliant as you are, why you didn’t see this coming,’ said Scott.

Tony raised his eyebrows and leaned forward. ‘See what coming?’

‘Our punishment. General Ross’s solution to problems that he wanted to go away and never see the light of day. We’ve been watching these movies, and I got to thinking about how similar some of this is to what happened to us after we were captured. How something can get corrupted and how horrible acts can be done under the guise of leadership. How there is no accountability and anything can happen. Anyone can disappear,’ explained Scott.

Bucky gazed at Scott with admiration and nudged Steve, who understood where Bucky was coming from. Steve nodded at Bucky in agreement; Scott was much more than met the eye.

‘And I disappeared and the one person in my life who was the most affected was my daughter. I don’t understand how you could not take into consideration that Ross wouldn’t give a damn about her or any of us and use the Accords as his excuse to put us away. I just don’t know how that detail escaped your attention,’ concluded Scott, shaking his head.

‘You’re right. When you were all brought in, I figured you’d cool your heels in some type of jail. Somewhere that was restricted access, of course…. but somewhere I could find you. I couldn’t find you. You disappeared and it wasn’t until I did some digging behind the scenes that I found out. And I had to dig deep because that information was meant to remain hidden.And then I had to know not only where you were but where Steve and Bucky were. So I talked to Sam. But I would have come again and got you out,’ said Tony, quietly.

Scott scoffed at Tony, raising his eyebrows, and shaking his head. ‘Really.’

‘Yes, really. But Steve and Bucky got to you first. And I’m glad they did. I’m glad they got you out and I’m glad you got away where Ross couldn’t get at you. Sure, I could have tracked you down when you escaped but I didn’t want to risk giving you away. I’d done enough…. damage. And I needed to figure out how to shut Ross down afterward,’ continued Tony.

Tony stood up and faced Scott, Sam, and Clint, holding his hands out and looking sick at heart..

‘I know I said this to Wanda but I am… I am sorry. I’m sorry that this happened to you. I’m sorry we fought. I’m sorry I lost control when Zemo revealed what happened to my parents. I’m still trying to understand that Bucky was…. coerced and he didn’t know my dad when he saw him then, although my dad knew him but…. and my mom was so scared and well…. Scott, I understand what you’re saying…. and I’m sorry,’ said Tony, softly.

‘I’m sorry about your parents. We’re all human, Tony. We all fuck up. But setting Bucky’s role aside, this is your team. These are the ones who have your back and who fought at your side. And General Ross is…. well, just look at his history with Bruce,’ pointed out Scott, gently. 

Tony bowed his head. ‘Yeah. OK, you got me there.’ Tony sat down again and exhaled, running his hands through his hair.

‘Hey, Tony…. it’ll take time, that’s all. Your heart was in the right place and your intentions were good, but you know what they say about good intentions,’ said Steve with a smirk.

Tony smiled faintly. ‘Well, I knew I was going to hell a long time ago, so no surprise here, huh?’

‘Oh, stop. Just…. I’m glad we talked…. and I’m glad no one got punched,’ said Scott.

‘Anyone else have anything?’ asked Tony.

‘Just don’t fuck up so badly next time. I might be the one with the least history with you, aside from Scott, but that doesn’t mean I have a whole lot of time for any bullshit,’ said Sam.

‘Noted,’ said Tony. ‘Do you still want me to work on some wings?’

‘That would go a long way towards making things up, I will admit,’ said Sam, chuckling.

‘OK. The next time we get together, why don’t you stop on down at the shop and we can talk. I’d like to know what you’d like improved,’ said Tony.

‘That sounds real good,’ said Sam. ‘Thanks.’

Tony looked at Clint. ‘Are we OK, Clint? I’m sorry…. you have kids and a wife and… I’m not going to try to make any excuses. Just that I hope we can go from here.’

Clint smiled. ‘All right, then. If you wanna make things up with me and invent some more of those trick arrows, I won’t say no,’ he joked.

Tony grinned. ‘I’ll take you up on that.’

Tony turned to Bruce, then and said, ‘I’m sorry. I should have remembered your history, I should have known that was a good enough red flag to proceed cautiously. I know you weren’t involved and I know that it didn’t affect you this time…. but I’m sorry.’

Bruce smiled. ‘I’m sure Ross is wondering how everyone got out of his supposedly escape-proof prison.’

‘He can wonder all he likes. I’m not snitching,’ said Steve, good-naturedly.

‘Shall we watch the movie some more?’ asked Thor. ‘If everything is resolved for now.’ His voice was calm, and everyone relaxed when he spoke.

‘I think a good deal of it has been talked about, yeah,’ agreed Clint. ‘What do the rest of you think?’

Scott and Sam nodded in agreement and Wanda smiled.

‘Where did we leave off?’ asked Thor.

‘Oh. Luke was appealing to Han’s baser nature,’ said Steve. He looked at Tony who started the movie up again and they watched as Chewbacca let Luke know he wasn’t up for any of Luke’s shenanigans.

‘Right. Duh. OK, so there they go! Hah. Chewbacca gets to play prisoner. I’m sure he’s thrilled,’ commented Bucky.

‘At least Luke had the sense not to try and force the handcuffs on him. That would have been the end of the movie real quick,’ cackled Scott.

‘Hah. ‘Aren’t you a little short for a Stormtrooper?’ That’s awesome!’ crowed Clint.

‘And here we have Han. Who isn’t quite as suave as he thinks he is,’ laughed Bruce.

‘That sounded like Dernier that one time, remember? When we were trying to get past those guards,’ said Bucky.

‘I forgot about that. So yeah, we were trying to get past these guards to get into this side entrance at this Hydra site. We thought it would be easy…. a little used side door. Two guards… we’d bluff them, get in, and then wreak havoc. What no one took into account is that Dernier’s French accent gets thicker when he is stressed,’ said Steve.

‘And he was stressed. He said he could bluff his way through and it wasn’t fair that Dum Dum got to fool everyone all the time. So we said, sure, go ahead. You can have your turn,’ added Bucky.

‘How did that go?’ asked Wanda, entranced.

‘About as well as you’d expect. The guard was suspicious, asked to see identification, Dernier tried to pull an Obi-Wan and we had a small fire fight that brought about thirty Hydra goons down on us in about ten minutes,’ said Bucky.

‘We had to hightail it out of there because us versus them wasn’t good odds. Dernier was cursing in French the entire time. We had to try again the next night, but at that point, they knew something was up and we ended up having to use explosives as a distraction. Again,’ said Steve, rolling his eyes.

Bucky laughed as Han, Leia, and Luke jumped into the trash compactor. ‘This wasn’t in the plans, was it?’

‘No… it looks a bit like a few of the stunts we pulled. We made things up as we went along,’ said Steve.

‘See, this is how things would go. We’d plan things out. I’d point out things we should do. Steve would kind of agree. And then we’d get there and it would all go to hell,’ said Bucky, nudging Steve in his side.

‘Stop with the elbow, Buck! It wasn’t that bad. We only had to come up with something different a few times,’ protested Steve.

‘Look. You can fool yourself all you like, but I was there, too, and I remember how often our plans were, ‘well, now what?’’ said Bucky.

Steve huffed and turned back to the movie, watching as Artoo managed to stop the trash compactor in time.

‘OK, so now they gotta get back to the ship and get out of there. Somehow,’ said Bucky.

‘Remember, Obi-Wan is going to shut down the tractor beams. See? He’s been creeping along and taking care of business. Not getting himself stuck in a trash compactor,’ pointed out Scott.

‘Right. Agh. They kissed. I mean, it wasn’t like a big ol’ kiss but…. uh….’ trailed off Bucky.

‘Don’t forget, this was the very first movie. No one knew anything about them, really,’ reminded Natasha.

‘Oh, yeah. It’s weird watching it this way, though. _We_ know they’re twins so any physical affection is going to be…. ‘ Bucky trailed off and made a face.

‘Hot? Are you looking for hot?’ teased Scott.

Bucky threw a pillow and hit Scott’s head. ‘Watch it. I can get more of those.’

‘Hey, they’re almost there! And they have the droids,’ said Sam.

‘Oh, hell. And there’s Obi-Wan. And Darth Vader!’ exclaimed Bucky. ‘Now this is…. wow. Did Obi-Wan know this was going to happen?’

‘I don’t think so…. but once he could sense Darth Vader’s presence, he must have known how it would have ended,’ said Jane. 

‘This is kind of like watching us fight, isn’t it?’ asked Bucky, softly, looking at Steve.

‘We aren’t enemies,’ protested Steve.

‘Now we aren’t…. but in DC? That was a whole different story. And the first time, you didn’t know it was me at first… and the second time…. well, you had a lot at stake,’ said Bucky, softly.

‘You were worth it,’ said Steve, firmly. ‘Every minute I fought to remind you of who you are, it was worth it.’

Bucky took Steve’s hand and twined their fingers together while smiling at Steve. Steve raised their hands and kissed Bucky’s knuckles.

‘Did the sugar content in this room rise dramatically high all of a sudden?’ teased Scott, staring pointedly at his root beer bottle.

‘I can find another pillow, there, pal,’ threatened Bucky.

‘I can shrink down and make a party in your pants,’ reminded Scott.

‘I can squish you,’ said Bucky.

‘That…. is an image I did not need,’ groaned Sam.

‘Oh…. Obi-Wan, you’re kicking ass!’ yelled Clint. They all watched as Obi-Wan faced Darth Vader.

‘He’s going to fall over,’ refuted Bucky. ‘He’s kind of in his senior years, there. And Darth has his machine stuff to help and all.’

‘But he’s providing a distraction. He knows everyone needs to get to the ship. So he’s going to do the best he can to get them there. Even if that means sacrificing himself,’ said Clint.

‘See, that’s why Jedis are so badass. You kill them and they come back more powerful than before. Like, Force ghosts, I think,’ said Thor.

‘’Force ghosts’? Is that what we’re calling them?’ asked Tony.

‘That’s what I am calling them. See? He’s gone,’ said Thor. ‘But he’s not gone gone.’

‘Did you see him look over at Luke? Did you see him look at Luke and Leia?’ asked Jane.

‘Whoa. Ok, mind blown,’ said Sam. ‘How many times have I watched this movie and not put that together?’

‘Because you hate Jar Jar Binks,’ teased Scott.

‘True. But still. He saw Luke and Leia and he knows who they are! And he looked at Darth Vader and he _smiled_ because he’s crazy as a fox,’ said Sam, admiration in his voice.

‘He did. And he was…. he knew exactly what he was doing and why…. but I wonder what he thought when he saw them together. The last time he saw them, they were newborns,’ said Clint.

Sam snorted. ‘I know. I gotta wait until ‘Return of the Jedi’ but all I’m saying is damn continuity is a thing. Use it!’

‘Setting that aside, it might have made it easier to do what he did. He protected them as long as he could,’ said Clint.

‘Yeah. And here’s that whole old guy gotta die thing again,’ said Scott. ‘At least he’s following a trend. Like master, like padawan.’

Bruce snickered. ‘Nice, Scott.’

They watched as Han prepared to leave and Luke stopped to talk to him.

‘Who thinks Luke has a crush on Han?’ asked Scott.

Bucky stared at Scott. ‘What.’

‘I mean, just look at Han. He’s sexy and hot and handsome…. he’s got that derring-do thing going on…. wouldn’t you want to tap that?’ asked Scott.

‘I never thought Luke had a crush on Han. He has a crush on Leia which is more mortifying than I care to think about,’ muttered Bucky.

‘Again, we know stuff because we watched the prequels. No one knew anything when they first saw this movie,’ reminded Steve.

‘Well, sure. But still,’ said Bucky mutinously.

‘So I think Luke had a crush on Han and on Leia. Both is good,’ said Scott.

‘I like guys and gals,’ said Tony. ‘As the tabloids are more than happy to tell you.’

‘In this universe, wouldn’t there be like, all types of genders?’ asked Jane, curiously. ‘I mean, you have all different types of beings…. they can’t all be binary, you know. Science isn’t just binary, despite what some people think.’

‘True, that. To everything you said,’ agreed Wanda. ‘In that case, there’s got to be all kinds of sexuality, too. So Luke could be attracted to Han and Leia and whoever else he likes.’ 

‘Hey, he could even be asexual and not be interested in pairing up at all. Like, maybe it’s just buddy buddy stuff,’ pointed out Sam.

‘Yeah. Or Luke could hang out with Han and after a while, wanna be a couple,’ said Bruce.

‘Right right….so all of that could happen. Poor Luke. He could be paired up with anyone and no one at all,’ said Steve.

‘Way to settle the argument, oh fearless leader,’ teased Scott.

‘This is where things get down to the wire. The Death Star is headed their way. And if they destroy that planet, that’s it. No more Rebellion,’ said Natasha.

‘The heart of the Rebellion is on Yavin 4. So if they destroy that planet and most of the ships, then yeah…. the Empire won. So it’s either make it or break it time,’ said Bruce.

‘No pressure or anything. And they don’t have their full fleet. A lot of them went to Scarif and then were destroyed. This is all that’s left,’ said Tony.

‘Oh, lovely. They either destroy the Death Star or…. that’s it,’ said Scott.

‘So imagine back then, in the movie theatre. Everyone’s watching this part and the tension is amazing. Everyone’s rooting for the Rebellion. Well, most everyone. There could be some Empire fans,’ added Bruce.

‘Wow. It would have been so cool to see this back then,’ said Steve, wistfully.

‘But you get to see it now with us… and Bucky gets to enjoy it, too,’ said Sam. 

‘And Bucky is happy to watch it just like this,’ said Bucky with a grin.

They watched as Darth Vader joined the fight in his TIE fighter.

‘Awww, come on, man. That’s not fair,’ protested Clint.

‘They want to end it, so they’re going to bring in their ringer,’ pointed out Natasha. She leaned her head on Clint’s shoulder.

‘Yeah, OK. Still. He’s the best pilot around. You heard what Obi-Wan said… and you saw what Anakin could do in his prime. These ships don’t have a chance,’ said Clint, reaching up to stroke Natasha’s hair.

‘Oh, _hell_ yeah!!!!’ whooped Sam as Han Solo swooped into sight like an avenging angel.

‘Ok, who thought he was coming back? Bucky, did you think he was coming back?’ asked Sam, still gleeful.

‘I was hoping he would…. he couldn’t stay away from them all in the end. There’s still some heart left in him,’ said Bucky.

‘Good to know that money wasn’t the only thing that was important to him,’ said Thor, lifting his root beer bottle.

‘Cheers to that!’ exclaimed Scott, leaning over to clink bottles with Thor.

They watched as Luke destroyed the Death Star and cheered.

‘Did you hear him? Did you?’ asked Scott.

‘I did! That was Obi-Wan, wasn’t it?’ asked Bucky. ‘He did come back, just like he said he was going to.’

‘Can’t keep a good Jedi down,’ teased Clint.

‘Nope. Oh, geez…. look at all those people!’ said Bucky, watching as Luke was mobbed when he got out of his plane.

‘And now we have some pomp and circumstance,’ said Bruce.

‘Oh, the award ceremony…. boy, they all clean up pretty good, don’t they?’ asked Bucky.

Steve laughed. ‘Looks like me back in the States when I was Captain America selling war bonds and all. I looked pretty good on the outside but on the inside, I was feeling pretty miserable. I wasn’t doing anything and I felt like a fraud.’

‘Pretty sure these guys didn’t feel like frauds, though,’ said Clint. ‘Sides, you did plenty in the end, didn’t you?’

‘The big mook is blushing. Of course,’ teased Bucky, laughing as Steve turned to scowl at him.

‘They deserved that award ceremony,’ said Scott.

‘You know who else deserved an award ceremony? Everyone from ‘Rogue One’... if it weren’t for them, there would have been no victory,’ said Bucky.

‘Yeah. But they never used that call sign again…. the one Bodhi created. It was in honour of them,’ said Clint.

‘That’s the least that should have been done. They sacrificed everything,’ said Bucky.

‘And that’s the end of the first original trilogy movie. Did you like it, Bucky?’ asked Steve.

‘I did. Got me thinking about when we saw movies… how cool they were, and how it took us away from the real world for a while. These movies are just like that. I’m glad we’re watching them,’ said Bucky.

‘I’m glad we’re talking, too,’ said Steve. ‘I know it’s hard and I know there’s a lot of stuff under the surface. But we can’t make that mistake again. We got to talk to each other. And we got to hold each other accountable, even if it’s hard to hear that we’ve messed up.’

‘And with that, I’m going to head to bed,’ said Scott. ‘I gotta head back out in the morning. My daughter has some school thing I want to be there for.’

‘Yeah. Should we all get together soon to watch the next movie? How does next week sound?’ asked Steve.

‘Let’s check our calendars and then we can decide. I gotta get to bed. It’s great watching these movies back to back but it’s late!’ exclaimed Sam.

‘Ok. We’ll decide later. Night, everyone!’ said Steve. He smiled as they all went their separate ways.

‘Ready for bed, Buck?’ asked Steve.

‘Yeah. I’m probably going to dream about stormtroopers and TIE fighters tonight,’ said Bucky with a smile.

‘Could be worse things to dream about,’ said Steve with a rueful smile.

‘Yeah…. let’s head to bed,’ said Bucky, taking Steve’s hand.


	7. The Empire Strikes Back or In Which the Team has Bucky's Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam is an enthusiastic guide to his favourite movie out of all of the Star Wars ones made thus far.
> 
> Finally, Tony and Bucky talk about redemption, forgiveness, and loss.

‘And now the movie we’ve all been waiting for,’ announced Sam, with a grand gesture as he seated himself.

Steve chuckled. ‘You’ve been patient, Sam…. waiting for us to get to this movie and not losing your enthusiasm.’

‘I have been patient. But it shall be rewarded tenfold because this movie is the shit!’ exclaimed Sam.

‘This is your favourite one, right?’ asked Bucky. He sat down next to Steve and put an arm around Steve’s shoulders.

‘This is the one. The music, the plot, the way it was filmed…. there was not one thing wrong with this movie. When it came out, it blew everyone’s expectations away,’ said Sam.

‘Yeah. Usually sequels don’t hold up to the original movie. It’s difficult to make lightning strike twice, so to speak,’ clarified Clint. He had his legs in Natasha’s lap and she rested her hands on top of them.

‘There’s nothing to worry about with this movie,’ said Scott. He sat down next to Wanda who grinned at him happily.

‘I agree. This movie is pretty great,’ said Bruce. He’d sat over in the chair by Tony, resting his forearm against the side table. 

‘I’m not even going to try and disagree with any of you because I happen to think that this movie is top notch,’ said Tony. ‘Also, I think we need to tweak the podracer a bit. It’s almost ready for a trial run, but I want to make sure it hovers without any issues.’

‘Just let me know,’ said Thor. ‘I can arrange with Heimdall for us to go. And I don’t know if I’ve seen this one. So I’ll be new to it like Bucky.’

Tony started the movie and they all cheered as the music swelled.

‘So you might be wondering a little bit at the title. The first movie in the original trilogy was ‘Star Wars, A New Hope,’’ said Sam. ‘This movie is called ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ and there’s a lot of information right in the name.’

‘I take it the Rebellion had their victory but now it’s the Empire’s turn,’ said Bucky. ‘What godforsaken ice cube is that?’

‘Oh, that’s Hoth. It’s where they set up base. It’s an outer rim planet and pretty much a damn misery to try and live on,’ answered Natasha. ‘They figured it would take awhile for any Imperial ships to figure out where they are.’

‘Looks like they’re setting up perimeter,’ observed Bucky. ‘Or checking it, at least.’

‘Yup. They’re trying to be smart because they know that the Empire is sending out Imperial search droids to try and find them,’ said Steve.

‘What are those creatures?’ asked Thor, entranced. ‘They look a bit like a cousin to the Bilgesnipes I hunt.’

‘Those are Tauntauns,’ answered Sam. ‘They are mostly suited to this climate, but it’s difficult for them, too.’

‘Looks like Han and Luke are used to going out on patrol with each other,’ said Bucky.

‘Yeah. They’ve been here for three years and they’ve had time to really get to know each other and work together,’ said Clint.

‘And there we have our giant nerd for the night. Thank you, Clint,’ teased Natasha.

‘Hey. Sam and I got this covered, right?’ said Clint. ‘He’s got the main movie stuff and I’ve got all the trivia.’

‘It’s an unbeatable combination,’ agreed Sam, reaching over to give Clint a high five.

‘So Han went back and Luke is checking out something something,’ said Thor. ‘And we know that the Empire is sending out probe droids.’

‘I really do like the music,’ said Bucky. ‘There’s different themes for everyone, right?’

‘Yeah, now the music is something else. So John Williams has been the main composer for most of the ‘Star Wars’ movies and this movie is where he really shines.,’ said Sam.

‘You’re not going to tell me what the others are because I’ll see them as the movie goes along,’ said Bucky with a wry smile.

‘Yup. Oh, there’s our man Obi-Wan!’ exclaimed Scott. ‘And there’s where Yoda is at.’

‘What is ‘Dagobah’? Is that a planet?’ asked Bucky. 

‘It’s a planet,’ confirmed Clint. ‘But you’ll see exactly what’s so special about it later.’

Thor and Bucky exchanged commiserating looks. 

‘Not that I’m not enjoying this or anything,’ said Bucky, watching as Han and Leia sparred in the corridor. ‘But the anticipation is about killing me.’

‘It’s worth it, isn’t it?’ asked Sam with a grin.

Bucky rolled his eyes. ‘Yeah, you mook, it is.’

‘So this is where Han and Leia start their romance,’ said Thor.

‘But she’s stubborn and doesn’t want to be the first to say anything. Han doesn’t make it easy, either,’ said Jane. She smiled when Leia snapped an insult and Han responded in kind.

‘Does Chewbacca know he’s being volunteered?’ asked Scott, laughing.

‘Probably not. That’d be something, huh? ‘Hey, Chewie, smooch the princess!’ I’m sure that’d go over really well,’ chuckled Steve.

‘And there’s Han’s temper flaring again. He cares about Luke,’ said Bucky.

‘I think they’ve become best friends. He’s worried about Luke and he’s upset because he feels the Rebellion is being sloppy. He’s not going to sit around and wait for answers,’ said Natasha. ‘It’s the same with Clint and I. If either of us think the other is in trouble, we’re not going to sit on our hands.’.

‘So if I’m Han,’ said Bucky, ‘then who’s Luke?’

‘We gotta wait until you’ve seen all the movies before we can start deciding that,’ protested Clint.

‘No, we don’t. We’ve seen a lot of movies already!’ pointed out Bucky.

‘Ok, let’s just wait until after ‘Return of the Jedi’ and then we can at least start. Although you might want to wait until you watch ‘The Force Awakens’, the last one that’s been released,’ suggested Clint.

‘You all are trying to smush my fun,’ mock-grumbled Bucky. ‘I’ll wait, but I’m still Han.’

‘You might change your mind,’ said Clint. ‘There’s someone in ‘The Force Awakens’ you might identify with more.’

‘Oh, hey…. Han can use a lightsaber, too,’ observed Bucky.

‘Well, kind of. I mean, he’s not trying to fight with it. But he can cut a Tauntaun with it so yeah,’ said Wanda. ‘Poor Tauntaun.’

‘Did they have a disclaimer at the end of the movie that no Tauntauns were harmed in the making of this movie?’ asked Tony.

Natasha threw a pillow at him, beaning him in the face while Clint and Sam made faces at him.

‘I imagine those things _do_ smell pretty bad,’ said Thor. ‘Bilgesnipes also smell bad. That’s how you know they’re nearby. The smell could knock a man out.’

‘Good to know,’ said Scott. ‘In case we go hunting Bilgesnipe.’

‘Awww, look. Han is flirting with Luke,’ teased Wanda.

‘Uh-oh…. Bucky is going to flip out,’ said Scott, watching as Leia kissed Luke.

‘Gah!!!! Stop that!!!’ exclaimed Bucky.

‘It’s just…. you know, sisterly affection,’ snickered Natasha.

‘Give me that pillow, Stark,’ said Bucky, narrowing his eyes playfully at Natasha.

‘Here we go,’ said Sam, leaning forward as the Empire began its attack.

‘That music is something else,’ said Bucky. ‘It’s…. almost mechanical although I know it’s all instruments.’

‘Yeah. Like I said, John Williams really stretched his wings with this soundtrack,’ said Sam. ‘Now watch how this plays out.’

‘They got AT-AT’s down there?’ asked Bucky, watching as the Walkers advanced upon the Rebel soldiers.

‘Yeah. You saw what they could do in ‘Rogue One.’ It’s just as devastating on a cold planet as it is on a tropical one,’ said Sam.

‘This isn’t even a fair fight,’ said Bucky.

‘There goes Luke!’ pointed out Scott. ‘Those little ships are good for combat against other little ships, but against these big beasts, it’s another story.’

‘They’re figuring out a way, though,’ said Wanda. ‘It’s too late, though… they destroyed the shield generator.’

‘Did anyone catch Vader back there?’ asked Sam. ‘I know we’re all watching this snow battle, but that dude seriously likes to use the Force choke way too much.’

‘You would think these guys wouldn’t want to be promoted to a higher rank,’ commented Scott. ‘Sure, you’d command a Star Destroyer and all but if you messed up? You’d answer to Vader and nobody wants that.’

‘Yeah. Imagine those conversations… ‘What do you mean, you’re turning down promotion?’ ‘I don’t want to die by the Force’,’ said Clint. ‘I mean, what can you say to that?’

‘Oh, that’s convenient…. Han has to take Leia with him in his ship. Go Han, this is your chance!’ whooped Thor.

Jane laughed and said, ‘I don’t think he’s thinking that far ahead.’

‘At any rate, there they go. And here comes Vader,’ said Sam.

‘I can see him looking around and going, ‘they sure made it cosy here… that is, if cosy is freezing your ass off’,’ quipped Natasha.

‘Right,’ agreed Wanda. ‘They had three years to get things set up and really put down roots. It shows.’

‘And there’s the Millennium Falcon in trouble again,’ said Clint. 

‘Vader thinks Luke is on it, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. He wants Luke,’ answered Clint. ‘Somehow he found out that he has a son and now his attention is focused on that,’ answered Clint.

‘Could you imagine? Like we talked about earlier, if Vader could turn Luke to the Dark Side and all,’ said Steve.

‘But wait a minute…. like Obi-Wan said, wasn’t Anakin supposed to be the chosen one? He was the one to bring balance to the Force, and instead he tilts it to the Dark Side by joining the Emperor…. er, Palpatine,’ pointed out Bucky.

‘He was supposed to be, yes. I think that is what really got to Obi-Wan,’ said Sam.

‘Yeah, looks like prophecies can be wrong,’ said Bucky. ‘Anakin got twisted and manipulated. Is there any good left in him?’ 

‘Don’t you think he can be redeemed?’ asked Tony.

‘Do you think I could be?’ asked Bucky.

Sam sighed mournfully. ‘And here’s where we need to stop the movie and have our other big discussion.’

‘It’s a good place for it,’ said Natasha, watching as the Millennium Falcon made its way through the asteroid field.

‘Let’s pause it then and let’s hash this out. I think it’s important,’ said Steve, waving his hand to Tony, who paused the movie just as the Millennium Falcon found refuge in the cave on a huge asteroid.

‘Did anyone like the music for that scene? Because that’s one of my favourite musical interludes,’ said Sam. ‘Just want to get that out there before we talk and all.’

‘I really liked it,’ said Wanda. ‘It fit the scene.’

‘It sure did. I’m going to have to get the soundtrack so I can appreciate it properly,’ said Bucky, smiling at Sam.

‘Same ground rules apply as we set up the last time,’ said Steve, gently. ‘I believe Bucky started the conversation, so Buck, you wanna continue?’

‘Yeah. I mean, look at what Vader has done. He murdered the younglings…. he went after any other Jedi… he killed Obi-Wan in the end… he helped bring the Dark Side to power. Can he be redeemed? I can see a lot of myself in Vader,’ said Bucky.

‘How so?’ asked Tony.

Bucky snorted. ‘Please. I was the Asset. I was credited for high level assassinations and tilting the balance of power, and destabilizing countries and governments. I killed your parents, despite your father knowing who I was… despite your mother pleading and calling for your father… is that redeemable in your eyes?’

Tony was quiet. Everyone waited, giving him space.

‘I struggle with this. On one hand, I understand that you were not yourself, meaning,’ said Tony sharply, raising his hand when he saw Bucky open his mouth. ‘Let me finish. Please.’  
Bucky nodded and Tony eyed him for a moment then continued. ‘Meaning that the Bucky Steve knew, the Bucky my _father_ knew was submerged, just like your body was in that cryo tank.’

‘I know logically that you were about as responsible for all of that as any prisoner of war who was tortured and brainwashed. Although you physically did those things, if it were you, the Bucky Steve and my dad knew… you had zero responsibility. Did you fight it, at first?’ asked Tony.

‘I did. I fought so hard and I was punished,’ said Bucky, flatly. ‘And then I was frozen. And my mind was wiped. And all I knew was this was my mission…. This was what needed to be completed. I don’t want to use that as an excuse. It sounds weak. But it is what happened. And I’m sorry,’ said Bucky. ‘I can’t say enough how sorry I am.’

‘I’m not blaming you for that. And I try hard not to blame you at all. But emotionally….’ and Tony paused.

‘Well, yeah. Emotionally it’s fucked six ways to Sunday,’ agreed Bucky. He sighed and hunched forward, looking at Tony intently. ‘I don’t blame you for how you feel. What I did was monstrous and wrong. We all saw that video…. Well, you and I and Steve did. I was given a mission. And I was going to finish it no matter what.’

Tony swallowed hard and Bruce reached over and put a comforting hand on Tony’s shoulder.

‘You deserve all the time you need so your emotions can catch up to your logic. If that’s what you want, that is,’ said Bucky, wryly. ‘You don’t have to, either. It’s your call and I’m not going to tell you how to resolve it or even that you need to.’

‘It’d be easier, maybe,’ said Tony, hoarsely.

‘For who? Me? Steve? Anyone else here? This isn’t about us, Tony. This is about you and what you need. I took your parents away from you, and even though I wasn’t the me your dad knew, it doesn’t change that fact. It doesn’t make the hurt any better or the grief any easier.’ Bucky shook his head.

‘I was so angry…. I am still so angry…. my dad _knew_ you. He was… I could tell he was amazed but he knew you and he didn’t understand why you didn’t respond to him. And my mom…. ‘ Tony paused and wiped his eyes. ‘My mom and I were closer. Her and my dad had their problems, but that night…’

‘Hey, Tony…. you don’t have to…’ began Clint, his voice low and quiet.

Tony gave him a weak smile. ‘Hey, you’d think I should be loving this, huh? Me, finally the center of attention…. All of you hanging on my every word, huh?’

‘There’s nothing to love about this, Tony,’ said Clint, shaking his head. ‘You’re our friend and well, I can’t speak for all of us but despite our little blow up… I don’t wish this hurt on you.’

‘No, you’re speaking for all of us right now, Clint,’ said Sam, and everyone else nodded in agreement. ‘You lost your parents and you found out in a horrible way. You reacted like a human being would. You might have a suit of metal, but you don’t have a heart of metal.’

‘Says you,’ protested Tony, weakly. ‘Thank you for that, though. It’s just… seeing my mom afraid and in pain… calling for my dad… I guess she did love him in her way… and I’m sorry she died alone and afraid.’

No one spoke and Tony sighed and then looked at Bucky. ‘Did you kill her quickly? It looked like it was quick. You didn’t torture her…. it looked like you did your job and then took that case.’

‘Tony…’ Bucky closed his eyes and Steve took Bucky’s hand, squeezing it with his.

‘Please. Please tell me it was quick. Please,’ whispered Tony.

‘I had a job to do and that case to retrieve. Anyone in my way would be dealt with quickly and efficiently,’ said Bucky, reluctance in every word, his eyes still shut. ‘It was quick. She was startled and then she died.’

Tony gasped and curled over himself, leaning forward. Bruce followed him, kneeling to put his arm around Tony’s back and to hold onto him.

Bucky opened his eyes again and hid his face against Steve’s neck, letting Steve tuck Bucky against him.

‘You asked me if you could be redeemed,’ said Tony, after taking a few deep breaths. He sat up again and smiled at Bruce before looking at Bucky. ‘I think you’re asking for forgiveness, and I don’t know if I can do that just yet.’

Bucky turned in Steve’s arms and looked at Tony. ‘That is also up to you. You might never forgive me, or you might be able to do so one day. Hydra took a lot from me. They took my arm, my will, my memories. They made me into the type of being who could murder a former friend without a flicker of recognition. And they burnt every bridge I had with me standing on it.’

‘That’s why I can’t hate you… oh, I tried,’ said Tony. ‘When I was fighting you, I thought it was hate, but it was grief driving me and rage pushing me. But when I was able to step away, I didn’t hate you. When I read your files and how they shaped you, I didn’t hate you.’ 

‘Well, that’s a start,’ said Bucky.

‘It’s a start. And I also know,’ continued Tony, his voice stronger, ’that if I didn’t have Yinsen in that cave, if I didn’t have someone who showed me what a good man really was… I just might have gone down the same path you did. A little more torture, some conditioning, who knows? I could have been Obie’s wildest dreams.’

‘Thankfully you’re not,’ said Bruce, crisply. ‘You had Yinsen to guide you, and in the end Obie’s greed was his downfall.’

‘Hah!’ snickered Tony. ‘Nice play on words.’

‘So, to answer your question about Anakin…. can he be redeemed? Well, I think it depends on who he wants redemption and forgiveness from,’ said Bucky, quietly.

Tony nodded. ‘Damn, you’re good,’ he commented. ‘Did Hydra know they had that intelligence to work with?’

‘They knew enough,’ answered Bucky. ‘After all, I learned about six more languages, different type of weaponry, and how to ghost in plain sight. They made use of my brains.’

Sam glanced at the two of them. ‘Are you both okay for now? Because that was pretty heavy.’

Tony looked at Bucky who gazed back at him, steadily. ‘I think we’re fine. I’m better, anyway,’ answered Tony. ‘Bucky?’

‘Time,’ said Bucky. ‘All we can ask is to be given more time and see how thing go.’

‘Shall we see what happens next in the movie? Or do you guys want to talk some more?’ asked Sam.

‘I’m OK,’ said Tony, trying for a smile and then smiling broader. ‘That… that helped.’

‘Good,’ said Bucky. ‘Thank you, Tony. I wish we could have had this talk back then.’

‘Yeah, me, too,’ said Tony. ‘Me, too.’

‘So where the hell did we leave off again?’ asked Clint. ‘Because I kind of forgot.’

‘I believe the Millennium Falcon is inside a cave,’ reminded Thor. 

‘Oh, right. The “cave”,’ said Clint, making quotation marks with his fingers.

Tony rolled his eyes and unpaused the movie while Natasha smacked Clint on his arm and hissed, ‘Spoilers!’

‘So they’re in the cave and uh…. oh, hey…. it’s our old friend, Palpatine,’ said Scott.

‘Oooohhhh…. the son of Skywalker…. I’d give about anything to see the expression on Darth’s face right now,’ mused Clint.

‘Yeah. Good thing he has that breathing apparatus on. He can definitely bluff anyone with that,’ observed Scott. ‘That’s some quick thinking there, daddy Darth. Don’t want to kill off his son, but turn him to the Dark Side, that might do.’

‘So much for the whole balancing the Force out business,’ muttered Bucky. ‘How’s that going to happen if Darth wants to tip the scales even more to the Dark Side?’

‘Guess you’re going to have to watch the movies and wait and see,’ said Steve, gleefully.

Bucky cast him an exasperated look as Leia and Han finally kissed.

‘And there’s Threepio…. geez, Threepio, let them have some space!’ exclaimed Bucky, whipping his head back to catch the tail end of the kiss and Threepio’s interruption of the momentous occasion.

‘Oh, hey…. so here’s Dagobah!’ announced Scott cheerfully.

‘This entire planet is green or something? And did Luke just crash land into a swamp?’ asked Bucky.

‘He couldn’t see anything coming down,’ pointed out Wanda. ‘Probably the natural planet’s protection and all.’

‘If the entire planet is filled with the Force, it would be the place to go for Yoda, wouldn’t it?’ said Bucky.

Sam put a finger to the side of his nose and winked at Bucky, who guffawed.

‘Uh…. what happened to Yoda?’ asked Bucky.

Clint burst out laughing, as did Scott. ‘Remember that the prequels came out years later…. so this Yoda was the original Yoda, not the CGI Yoda.’

‘Is that a puppet?’ asked Bucky, fascinated.

‘Sure is. Frank Oz voiced Yoda and gave him life, so to speak. There was a team of puppeteers who made Yoda well, Yoda,’ explained Clint.

‘Fair enough,’ said Bucky. He laughed as Luke became increasingly more exasperated with Yoda’s antics.

‘So Luke doesn’t know who Yoda is and, well, Yoda is trolling the hell out of him,’ said Sam.

‘He has to have his fun somehow,’ said Wanda, smiling. ‘He’s been living alone here for a long time.’

‘Well, he chose a good spot. Obi-Wan retreated to Tatooine to keep an eye on Luke, and Yoda fled here because it would be difficult for Vader to find him. I’m going to assume Vader pretty much slaughtered every Jedi he could find,’ said Bucky.

‘Yeah. He set about to completely eradicate the Jedi order,’ said Bruce. ‘Destroyed any record of them. Murdered any Jedi he could track down, and he tracked down quite a few. There could be no threat to him or to the Emperor. That is also why Leia and Luke were separated and sent away and hidden. Leia was given Bail Organa’s last name, and Luke was raised far away.’

‘I shudder to think what Vader would have done with two Force-sensitive children,’ said Bucky.

‘Ugh, that’s not even something I want to think about much,’ said Wanda with a shudder.

‘And there’s Luke, training to be a Jedi,’ snickered Steve. ‘See? It’s his own version of bootcamp.’

‘You’re hilarious, pal,’ said Bucky, dryly. ‘Yoda looks like he’s still having fun.’

‘Well, he had his misgivings…. too old…. anger like his father…. Poor Obi-Wan had his work cut out for him, persuading Yoda to take Luke on as his apprentice,’ said Natasha. ‘I think he only did it because time was slipping away.’

‘Well, you’d think he want to do it because he’s also the son of Anakin Skywalker and goodness knows Skywalkers are powerful with the Force whether they know it or not,’ said Jane. ‘I’d not want to have Luke or Leia wandering around without being able to control their abilities.’

They all watched as Yoda warned Luke about the tree.

‘I don’t like that tree,’ said Scott. ‘It’s got all sorts of bad vibes when I look at it.’.

‘It’s Dark. Can’t you tell?’ asked Wanda.

‘That’s where Luke is going to face a huge test,’ explained Sam. ‘And Yoda’s trying to help him out.’

‘But he wants to bring his lightsaber with,’ said Bucky.

‘Yeah,’ replied Sam.

‘Oh, whoa! Darth Vader?’ asked Bucky, watching as Vader approached Luke.

‘Yeah. Notice that Vader doesn’t light his saber until Luke does,’ pointed out Clint.

‘Good eye, there, Hawkeye,’ praised Steve, grinning as Clint snorted.

‘That’s…. that’s disturbing,’ said Bucky, watching as Darth’s mask cracked open and revealed Luke’s face.

‘I freaked out when I saw that in the theater,’ confessed Clint. ‘That was waaay too much for this circus boy.’

‘Heh. Is this supposed to be a hint that Darth Vader is Luke’s father?’ asked Bucky.

‘Could be…. although no one was thinking that when they saw that scene,’ said Natasha.

‘Probably warning Luke that he, too, could become like Darth if he isn’t careful. I mean, he knew that his dad was a Jedi who was betrayed and murdered by Darth Vader,’ reminded Clint.

‘That does make more sense,’ admitted Bucky. He watched as Darth Vader dealt with the bounty hunters. ‘Well, things just got complicated for Han and everyone.’

‘A wee bit. Han’s crafty but those bounty hunters aren’t stupid,’ agreed Scott.

‘They’re safe for now,’ said Steve. ‘They just got to be careful.’

‘Yoda is putting Luke through his paces and Luke’s not being very, uh, impressive,’ commented Bruce. ‘See? He can’t even raise his X-Wing from the swamp.’ 

‘Do all Jedis have these sayings? ‘Do or Do not, there is no try.’ I like Chirrut’s better,’ said Bucky. 

‘Chirrut wasn’t a Jedi,’ reminded Natasha.

‘No. But he was a lot nicer than Yoda,’ said Bucky.

‘See? Yoda makes it look easy,’ complained Scott. ‘I’d react like Luke…. what the hell? I can’t raise that thing and then there’s Yoda, showing me how to do it right. How embarrassing.’

‘Well, Luke didn’t have the faith to do it. That’s the whole point of Yoda’s lesson,’ said Bruce.

‘Don’t be reasonable, Bruce,’ whined Scott.

Steve chuckled and said, ‘Bruce can’t help but be reasonable. That’s his other OTHER guy…. The Reasonable Guy. Don’t get him angry. You won’t like him when he’s angry.’

‘That’s just….’ Bruce shook his head and buried his face into his hands, pushing his glasses up off his nose.

‘Perfect? I think the word you were searching for was perfect,’ teased Steve.

‘See? This is what America doesn’t see,’ said Scott after staring at Steve with open mouthed astonishment. ‘Who would have guessed that Captain America was a troll?’

Bucky snorted. ‘Heh. Only all of us in the Howling Commandos. Everyone else got taken in by his sweet and innocent act. Not us. We knew better.’

‘Of course you knew better…. You had to put up with me,’ said Steve, bumping up against Bucky’s side.

‘So oh, hey…. who is that?’ asked Scott, distracted as Han meets the greeting party at Cloud City.

‘That is Lando Calrissian,’ said Sam. ‘He’s my hero.’

‘Wow. Looks like we have another scoundrel,’ commented Scott. ‘Is he the one who owned the Millennium Falcon then?’

‘Yeah. Han won it from him in a card game,’ said Clint. ‘Lando was not happy to say the least.’

‘He’s making the moves on Leia!’ exclaimed a gleeful Wanda, exchanging amused looks with Jane.

‘Doesn’t look like she’s buying it,’ said Jane. ‘She’s not stupid.’

‘Of course she isn’t. But goodness. Look at how gorgeous it is there,’ said Wanda.

‘It is gorgeous,’ said Jane. She winced when Threepio was blasted into pieces. ‘Ouch.’

‘Who was that?’ asked Bucky.

‘You’ll find out,’ said Clint. ‘No spoilers.’

‘And now we’re back to Luke. Does Yoda have a thing for handstands and whatnot?’ asked Scott.

‘Maybe?’ answered Tony. ‘I think he wants to teach Luke how to multi-task or something.’

‘I’d like to teach Luke how to multi-task,’ said Scott. ‘What? As if you would turn down a Jedi.’

Wanda giggled. ‘Maybe I wouldn’t.’

‘Well, here’s where it goes to shit,’ said Natasha, dryly, watching as Luke protested to Yoda his need to go rescue his friends.

‘Like Luke’s ready to face Vader. Look what happened at the tree. He messed up,’ pointed out Sam.

‘See, he should listen to Obi-Wan and Yoda,’ said Clint. ‘You’d think if two Jedi say, ‘don’t do the thing’ you don’t do the thing.’

‘Must be a Skywalker thing,’ mused Bucky. ‘I mean, everyone says, ‘Skywalker, no’ and Skywalker says ‘Skywalker, yes!’

‘Think how many times Padme tried to tell Anakin no. That pregnancy must have addled her brains or something,’ muttered Jane.

‘Uh oh,’ said Thor, sighing. ‘Here we go.’

‘That’s the big thing I hated about her entire storyline. She started out as this strong, independent young woman and in the end was helpless. I hated it. She should have survived. She shouldn’t have died like that,’ protested Jane.

‘Hey, don’t look at me because I agree,’ said Sam. ‘Highly unsatisfying.’

‘Looks like he’s headed off and whoa! Did Yoda just say what I think he said?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yup. What a way to tease the audience at that time, huh? ‘There is another.’ Nice to have a contingency plan set in place,’ said Scott. 

‘Did people know who he was referring to?’ asked Bucky.

‘I don’t think so. There were other things that occupied their mind, to be honest,’ answered Bruce. He frowned at the screen. ‘Uh, we might want to stop this for a moment.’

Steve looked at Bruce and then nodded. ‘Can we… can we stop for a moment, Tony?’

‘OK,’ said Tony, pausing the movie.

‘Hey, Buck… there’s going to be some stuff coming up that might be hard for you to watch,’ said Steve.

‘Like what?’ asked Bucky.

‘This is a bit of a spoiler but I think you should know ahead of time so you can decide if you want to watch it. They freeze Han to transport him with Boba Fett,’ explained Steve.

‘Oh,’ said Bucky, quietly.

‘We can skip it altogether if you want, and we can tell you that part of the plot. You don’t have to watch it,’ said Steve. ‘There’s also a bit of torture, too. Nothing too overt but… it’s up to you, Buck. We can tell you what happened and then go on after that.’

‘I’m glad you let me know first,’ said Bucky. ‘Let me see. If we need to stop the movie, I’ll let you know.’

‘Are you sure?’ asked Sam. ‘We’ve all seen this movie. We don’t have to watch that part of it. It’s not going to make it any less enjoyable.’

‘Yeah,’ added Clint. ‘Sides, we want to watch this with you and have a good time. We don’t want you to feel pressured like we’d be disappointed or anything. This has been great for all of us. We want to keep it that way.’

Bucky smiled. ‘I really appreciate that. I think it’ll be OK.’

‘All right. Let’s listen to Bucky. I’ll start it up again but if you need to stop it or skip it, just say the word,’ said Tony.

They watched as Leia, Han, and Chewbacca discovered who else was in Cloud City.

‘Darth Vader! Oh, that explains a lot,’ said Bucky. ‘Luke’s vision and everything. This is going to get pretty ugly.’

‘Ok, this is the worst version of ‘meet my father’ ever,’ quipped Scott, watching as Vader interrogated Han.

‘I haven’t thought of it like that!’ exclaimed Clint. He laughed and said, ‘Could you imagine if Darth knew? ‘Turn the power up to 11…. I want him to understand what could happen if he makes my little girl cry.’’

Jane rolled her eyes. ‘Ugh. Stop. That’s just so tiring and gross. A child isn’t a father’s possession, you know.’

‘Like Darth would care. But yeah, I know,’ said Clint. ‘Sorry. I was just joking.’

‘It is funny though,’ said Natasha. ‘Because Leia would be like, ‘dad, stop it! I can take care of myself!’ and Luke would be like, ‘don’t get on Leia’s bad side.’’

‘And now we know what Threepio saw,’ added Sam, smiling as he listened to the banter.

‘True. Too little too late,’ said Bruce. ‘At least he tried.’

Steve took Bucky’s hand when they watched Han escorted into the chamber where he was to be frozen.

‘Best line ever,’ sighed Scott. He fluttered his lashes at Sam. ‘’I love you.’’

Sam rolled his eyes but responded, ‘’I know.’’

Bucky tightened his fingers around Steve’s and his lips pressed together as Han was frozen.

‘You okay, Buck?’ asked Steve.

‘Yeah,’ replied Bucky tersely, not taking his eyes away from the screen.

‘You okay there, Bucky?’ asked Sam.

‘I’m OK. I mean… Look, this was difficult but I’m glad I could watch it and go, ‘this is a movie and this isn’t me.’ And I know it won’t ever be me, anymore,’ said Bucky, quietly.

‘It won’t ever be you anymore. Not if I have anything to say about it,’ said Steve.

‘They have to get through the rest of us, first…. it won’t be a pleasant experience,’ said Clint with a cold smile.

Bucky looked at everyone who looked back and nodded.

‘Thank you,’ said Bucky, a small smile on his lips. ‘I’m beginning to believe that.’

‘Take all the time you need,’ said Sam. ‘Trust is hard earned but well worth it.’

‘Sam, you know the right words to say no matter what,’ said Wanda, reaching over and squeezing his arm.

‘It takes practice. Lots and lots of practice,’ said Sam dryly, grinning when Wanda giggled.

‘Oh, hey… Vader’s at it again,’ said Bucky, leaning back and stretching his legs out.

‘See, this is why you can’t trust Sith Lords…. they always mess with agreements,’ complained Clint. ‘Also, Vader is awfully fond of that choke hold business.’

‘It’s his signature move. You know, like in ‘Mortal Kombat,’’ said Scott.

‘I’d think his signature move would involve his lightsaber,’ pointed out Bruce.

‘Well, sure. But a combo move? Like, you know, choke hold, throw, and then the lightsaber bit,’ explains Scott.

‘Okay, that makes sense,’ said Bruce.

‘Oh…. Lando’s a clever one,’ said Clint, admiringly. ‘Look at him with those moves.’

‘See, that’s exactly what I would have done,’ said Tony. ‘Set up something so that I could take care of business despite things turning against me.’

‘You always make sure you have another plan,’ said Steve. ‘That’s one thing that’s admirable about you, Tony. You find a way.’

‘Awww, stop. I’ll get a complex,’ teased Tony.

‘And here comes Luke,’ piped up Wanda. ‘There’s Leia, warning him…. She tried, anyway.’

‘See? That’s someone Padme would be very proud of. That’s the spirit!’ cheered Jane.

‘Luke is walking into a trap of Vader’s making. He better be careful,’ said Natasha.

‘Vader is calling the shots, here. Luke is way out of his depth,’ said Clint.

‘He shouldn’t have come,’ said Bucky. ‘Look, I know he wanted to save them but Han is already gone. Leia and Chewbacca have to flee with Lando… and that leaves Luke to Vader. He should have listened to Yoda and Obi-Wan.’

‘The heart wants what it wants,’ said Wanda, gently. ‘If someone loves someone enough, they’ll do most anything to save them, even if they know it might be fruitless.’

‘Yeah… just… what happens, then, if Vader kills Luke or he wins Luke over? That’s it, then,’ said Bucky.

‘There’s always hope,’ said Wanda. ‘Hope exists in the hardest places.’

Bucky shot Wanda an undecipherable look. ‘Sometimes,’ he murmured.

‘I think at this point, Vader is just toying with Luke, anyway,’ said Sam. ‘I mean, look…. Luke isn’t even a full Jedi yet. He’s still a padawan, I guess…. and Vader is fully trained as a Jedi. There is no way he couldn’t have killed him by now.’

‘He doesn’t want to kill him. He wants to turn him. Why kill someone when you can get them on your side and working with you? That’s the gamble Vader’s casting right now. It’s smart,’ said Natasha.

‘It’s risky,’ countered Tony. ‘Luke isn’t going to just give into Vader’s wishes. He knows that Vader killed his father… well, you know… to him, anyway, that’s the truth. And he hates Vader for taking his father from him. Why would he want to side with his father’s murderer?’

Bucky smiled, humourlessly. ‘There’s levels and levels here, Tony.’

‘Yeah. But one, you weren’t you, you were what Hydra shaped and tortured and became someone they wanted… and Anakin chose to become Vader. You didn’t choose to become the Asset or the Winter Soldier or whatever they chose to call you. Not even the same thing,’ said Tony emphatically.

‘Thank you,’ said Bucky.

Tony inclined his head, smiling though his eyes were wet. ‘You’re welcome.’

‘Now Vader has Luke where he wants him,’ said Thor. ‘Vader hunted him like a predator hunts prey. He wore him down and Luke has nowhere to go.’

‘Yeah, literally,’ added Clint.

Bucky gasped when he heard Vader say the words, ‘I am your father.’ He looked at Steve, who smiled in affirmation.

‘This must have driven the crowds wild!’ exclaimed Bucky.

‘Pretty much,’ said Clint. ‘I mean, we didn’t know if it was the truth or if Vader was fucking with Luke’s mind. We all were stunned… shocked… amazed. It was the biggest thing talked about after people saw the movie.’

‘And did Obi-Wan lie to Luke… I bet they felt betrayed,’ said Bucky. ‘I would.’

‘See? Luke isn’t having any. He’s not going to go to the Dark Side,’ said Clint.

‘Yeah but look at that. He’s fucked. He went there to “rescue” everyone and look who’s needing rescuing? This just went pear shaped,’ pointed out Bucky.

‘Yeah. It’s easy to say, ‘look at your choices, Luke,’ but I know we’ve all been there,’ said Clint. ‘Natasha still won’t talk about Budapest.’

Natasha shook her head and smushed a pillow into the side of Clint’s head.

‘Hey…. watch it!’ laughed Clint.

‘Fine. But he’s still hanging there like a doorknob,’ said Bucky.

Steve snorted. ‘Good thing he has the Force on his side.’

‘Ohhhh, did you hear what Vader said?’ asked Sam.

‘That’s cold,’ added Scott. ‘Lando is gonna be so pissed.’

‘Lando? Try Chewbacca,’ said Sam. ‘He about strangled the hell out of Lando on Cloud City. He’s just going to finish the job.’

‘The point here,’ said Sam,’Is that Lando’s people did fix the Millennium Falcon’s hyperdrive but the Imperial soldiers undid it. And the only ones who know it are those Imperial officers and Vader.’

‘It’s a trap!’ exclaimed Bucky and he frowned in confusion as Clint and Scott fell over laughing.

‘What? It definitely is a trap,’ said Bucky, staring at Clint and Scott with bewilderment. ‘You know it is.’

‘Yeah, you’re right,’ said Clint, reaching for the tatters of his dignity after Sam stared at him.

‘Don’t give me those dead eyes, Wilson. That’s just damn scary,’ said Scott.

‘And there we go…. way to redeem yourself, Lando!’ exclaimed Tony. 

‘But you saw that Leia heard Luke, right? That’s a hint right there that they’re related somehow or something… at least that she’s Force sensitive,’ said Bucky.

‘True. There are those tiny hints, but I don’t think anyone was paying strict attention at the time,’ said Sam.

‘I love that Leia instinctively takes control. She gave the orders to rescue Luke, and she’s in charge. That’s a princess,’ said Jane, smiling happily.

‘And here comes Vader,’ said Thor. ‘All they need to do is capture the Millennium Falcon and board it. They can easily subdue everyone on board. And Luke is too weak to fight him.’

‘And now they discover that the Millennium Falcon’s hyperdrive is fucked,’ said Clint. ‘Oooh, lucky Lando!’

‘At least Chewie didn’t finish the job,’ said Tony. ‘He’s got to try and fix the hyperdrive.’

‘They’re running out of time,’ said Scott.

‘Oooh, look at Artoo!’ said Bruce, laughing. ‘He’s going to take care of business.’

‘Threepio is losing it,’ said Steve, his mouth twitching up into a grin. ‘His priorities are a little messed up.’

‘Yeah, let’s get captured by the Empire, but at least my leg is attached.’ Scott laughed.

‘Remember on Cloud City? Artoo wanted to know if the hyperdrive was fixed. He knew that something was wrong…. that the ship had been compromised,’ said Natasha.

‘I love Artoo,’ sighed Wanda. ‘He doesn’t care about anything except what needs to be done. And he’s the droid to do it.’

‘There they go!’ said Bucky, a grin on his face.

‘Good thing, too. Luke was in despair,’ said Bruce.

‘Yeah. And you know that despair is a way to the Dark Side,’ Thor reminded the others.

‘True. And he acknowledged Vader as his father,’ added Clint.

‘Luke is messed up, no doubt about that,’ said Scott. ‘I mean, geez. How would you feel? ‘Oh, hey…. remember that guy who murdered your dad? He’s somehow your dad. AprilFools!’ 

‘’April Fools’?’ repeated Natasha. She snickered at Scott’s abashed look. ‘You’re adorable.’

‘Don’t get him going,’ warned Clint. ‘He’ll take that and run with it all day long.’

‘So there they are. Luke has a new hand…. look, like father like son!’ chirped Scott.

‘You should stop while you’re ahead,’ suggested Clint.

‘And they’re going to head out, then…. Chewbacca and Lando?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. They’ve got a plan to get Han back, but they’ve got to do some snooping around, first,’ said Steve.

‘Awww, that music is so good,’ sighed Sam. ‘Best movie, best music…. what did you think, Bucky?’

‘I think you’re right. The music, the movie…. the plot and everything…. and the big shocking news at the end! It’s the best! Although ‘Rogue One’ is a close second,’ said Bucky.

‘Agreed,’ said Sam. ‘That’s my second favourite movie.’

‘I’m not arguing with either of you. We all have our favourites,’ said Scott.

‘That was really fantastic, though,’ said Tony. ‘I’m going to tinker on the podracer over the next couple of days. I think we could test it out then.’

‘That would be great!’ exclaimed Thor. ‘Let me know and I will make arrangements with Heimdall.’

‘I’m looking forward to that,’ said Clint. ‘I can’t wait to see how it races.’

‘It’ll be fun,’ agreed Scott. ‘Science fiction come to life.’

‘This is our life now, Buck,’ said Steve with a wide grin. ‘We get to make podracers and watch movies and hang out with our friends.’

‘Can’t say there’s anything bad about it,’ admitted Bucky. ‘I’m glad this is my life now.’

‘I’m glad it’s your life, too,’ said Steve.

Scott groaned. ‘Those two are gonna make me throw up. So so sweet! I think I’m getting a tooth ache.’

Bucky rolled his eyes at Scott. ‘Be nice to the former tortured prisoner of war,’ he teased.

Steve covered his mouth with his hand and traded amused looks with Sam as Scott laughed.


	8. Return of the Jedi or In Which Steve Finally Listens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke is a Jedi, not a spy.
> 
> The Howling Commandos as Star Wars characters.
> 
> Sam is vindicated.

It was a few days before everyone could get together again. Jane had a science conference that she needed to attend as she was the guest of honour. Sam wanted to wrap up some things in Washington DC. Tony and Bucky were immersed in testing out the engines of the podracer with Thor as an eager assistant. But, they were all able to watch the next movie.

‘So this is the last of the original trilogy, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. This wraps up that story,’ answered Sam. ‘I like this movie. It’s not as good as ‘Empire’ but then again, nothing is like that movie.’

‘And then we have the one after the original trilogy. That’s going to be part of a trilogy too,’ said Bucky.

‘Yup. This December, the eighth movie is going to come out. And then they’ll have the ninth movie and some stand alone movies,’ answered Clint.

‘Yeah. They’ve got a Han Solo movie and a Boba Fett movie and I think maybe a Lando Calrissian movie in the works,’ said Sam.

‘There’s books, too,’ added Steve. ‘They fill in a lot of back story.’

‘Here I thought I wouldn’t find anything good to read, and now you’re telling me there’s books. How many books?’ asked Bucky.

‘A lot,’ answered Clint. ‘At least twenty.’

Bucky spluttered. ‘That’s a lot of books.’

‘Well, looks like you’ve got your work cut out for you, Buck. A whole summer’s worth of reading,’ said Steve, cheerfully.

Bucky snorted. ‘Don’t sound so happy about it. I’m gonna read them aloud to you.’

Steve laughed and shrugged. ‘That’s OK. I’m always looking for something to fall asleep to.’

Bucky pointedly turned away from a still snickering Steve and focused on Sam. ‘Are we going to start the movie?’

‘As soon as Tony gets here. He had to wrap up something but he’ll be here soon,’ answered Sam.

‘Just want to check in with you, Bucky…. you still OK after seeing that whole Han frozen in carbonite scene and everything?’ asked Natasha.

‘I’m OK. I really appreciate you asking. It helps that this was a movie. It wasn’t real life. And Han has friends who won’t desert him…. they’ll come after him,’ said Bucky. ‘There’s parallels there but what I take from it is although Han suffered, his friends won’t let him suffer for long.’

‘This is true,’ said Natasha. ‘And don’t even start,’ she added, turning to pin Steve with a gimlet stare.

‘What?’ protested Steve, flushing a delicate pink.

‘Oh, are we going to go on same song, umpteenth verse again?’ asked Sam, crossing his arms.

‘Yeah, I think he was gonna start,’ commented Bucky. 

‘Am I missing out on something?’ asked Tony as he entered the room. 

‘Yeah. And we’re ending it,’ said Scott, snorting as Steve protested.

‘I take it something’s going on with Cap?’ asked Tony.

‘Don’t let him get started,’ warned Natasha. ‘He’ll warm up his martyr’s complex and then we’ll all have to watch Bucky whoop his ass. We’ll never get to the movie at this rate.’

‘All I’m going to say is that it took us a lot longer to get to Bucky than it did for them to get to Han,’ put in Steve.

Sam threw a pillow at Steve’s head. ‘We’re not having this discussion because I agree with Natasha. You have spent way too much time thinking about this and you need to let it go.’

‘I think that if anyone has the right to demand an apology or further action from you, it would be me,’ said Bucky, quietly. ‘I’d be in your face if I thought you did me wrong.’

‘Didn’t I?’ challenged Steve, tilting his chin up.

‘Don’t give me that, Rogers. You’re dead wrong and you need to respect what I’m saying and let it be. You didn’t know I was still alive, you didn’t know I was being used by Hydra, and you sure as hell didn’t know that I was conditioned to obey those mooks,’ said Bucky. 

Bucky sighed and took Steve’s hand. ‘Look, I know you would have rescued me if you could. I know that if you and Peggy and Howard had known I was still alive, you would have figured out a way to get me out. But you didn’t, and they didn’t. It’s not your fault, and I sure as hell don’t blame them, either.’

Tony looked at Bucky with wide eyes. ‘Uh… you know, I didn’t even think of that. My dad would have come after you, but he thought you were dead, too.’

‘Anyone else would have been. That fall should have killed me and would have killed anyone else. But that second-rate serum that was given to me kept me alive. None of you knew about that because I didn’t talk about it,’ said Bucky, quietly.

‘You didn’t tell Steve or Peggy or Dad what Zola did to you?’ asked Tony, sitting down next to Wanda.

‘No. I didn’t want to be shipped out because I was unfit to fight. I wouldn’t leave Steve and I knew if I told them what happened and how I felt, I’d be on a ship back to New York in the wink of an eye,’ answered Bucky.

‘Jesus,’ muttered Sam. 

‘To be honest, at first I thought I was dead, too,’ confessed Bucky. ‘It hurt and I thought… that awful cold and all… I maybe ended up in one of Dante’s circles of hell or something.’

Steve cracked a smile. ‘You read too much, Bucky. Told you that would bite you in the ass sooner or later.’

‘Not my fault I have an active imagination, Stevie. I like to read,’ said Bucky, jostling Steve’s elbow, almost causing him to spill his drink.

‘You liked to give Dernier fits. He assumed you were an ignorant Yank and then you’d talk about some book you read and he’d curse in French,’ said Steve with a chuckle.

‘Remember when he asked me where I read all this and I told him that libraries existed in New York and I read to you when you were sick?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. And then I had to listen to the two of you talk about all the books you’ve read,’ said Steve. ‘Then Gabe and Morita put their two cents in. We must have been the best educated unit in Europe.’

‘So anyway,’ continued Bucky, rolling his eyes. ‘I discovered I wasn’t dead. And I survived that fall. There was no way you would have known.’

Steve shuddered. ‘I try to tell myself that it wasn’t my fault and that I didn’t know and that if I did…’ 

‘If you did, then you’d plan a rescue just like Luke’s planning with Lando and Chewie. I know you wouldn’t have left me there, Steve,’ said Bucky, softly.

‘I’m sorry, Buck,’ said Steve. He took a deep breath and met Bucky’s eyes. 

‘I know you are. So can you just let it go? Just…. let it rest now,’ said Bucky slowly, stressing the words. ‘There’s plenty of regrets to go around and we don’t need to add to them. It’s up to me to forgive you, and I have, Stevie. I forgive you.’

Steve nodded and lunged forward, wrapping his arms around Bucky’s neck. Bucky gently rested his fingertips against the back of Steve’s head, stroking his hair.

After a moment, Steve drew back and smiled shakily. His eyes were red-rimmed and wet, but his smile was genuine, and Bucky smiled back.

‘Is this the big talk, then?’ drawled Sam. ‘Because I know we have these in the middle of the movie usually but you two don’t want to do things like regular mortals.’

‘No… I think we’re good. Can’t promise there might not be more talking, though,’ said Bucky. He patted Steve’s arm. ‘You know this one can’t resist sharing feelings and all.’

‘Hey! Nothing wrong with sharing feelings and everything. It’s a bonding exercise,’ protested Scott.

‘I’d say we’re bonded, all right. Like super glue,’ joked Steve.

‘That was terrible, Rogers,’ commented Tony. ‘Never joke again.’

‘All right…. let’s get this movie started before I get old,’ said Bucky. ‘Not one word, Clint.’

Clint raised his eyebrows. ‘Hey… I wasn’t going to say a damn thing.’

Tony started the movie and they all cheered as the familiar logo appeared on the screen.

‘This is just like seeing an old friend,’ said Scott with a happy sigh.

‘So this movie is ‘Return of the Jedi’ and of course, with the last movie, the title says a lot,’ said Sam.

‘Yeah… so Luke is a Jedi now? He went and did extra training or something?’ asked Bucky.

‘Not sure how it all went down,’ said Sam. ‘I didn’t read the books but I am going to go out on a limb and assume that Luke practiced when he was out and about.’

‘I’d say he did,’ said Natasha.   
‘At any rate, Luke’s had time to practice and he had to make his own lightsaber, too. Remember, he lost his father’s lightsaber at Cloud City,’ Clint reminded Bucky..

‘Oh, yeah. He did. Wonder what Vader thought of that,’ mused Bucky.

‘I think he was focusing on capturing Luke and turning him to the Dark Side,’ said Thor. ‘He set up that elaborate trap and made sure that the Millennium Falcon was disabled. He probably thought about his lightsaber after everything was done.’

‘See?’ said Scott. ‘Vader is a badass. Would you want him threatening your productivity and motivation? Hell, no. I think I’d pee my pants or something.’

‘That Death Star is bigger than the previous one,’ noted Wanda. ‘They aren’t playing around.’

‘They want to crush the rebellion once and for all. The Empire is huge, sure… but the Rebellion has been a bigger thorn in their side than they thought,’ said Natasha.

‘Can we go back to the prequels for a moment? Because Palpatine kept the news of Luke’s birth from Vader. He didn’t know there were twins, I’m thinking. Keep one safe and secret and raise the other one as safely as possible,’ pointed out Jane.

‘Holy shit. You’re right. Vader didn’t know who Luke was in the first movie of the original trilogy. He knew the Force was strong with Luke but had no idea who he was,’ said Scott.

‘Wouldn’t you like to have been a fly on that wall? When Vader confronted Palpatine? That’s probably where the seeds were planted in Vader’s head. Palpatine kept his son from him? Fine. Then Vader is going to play the long con and turn Luke and together, they can destroy Palpatine and rule from the dark side of the Force,’ said Bruce.

‘Good thing I decided to pause the movie or we’d be halfway done at this point,’ said Sam with a chuckle. He laughed when everyone looked at the screen, which was frozen right outside of Jabba’s palace.

‘Where is that?’ asked Bucky.

‘Are you sure we should continue the movie?’ asked Sam. ‘Because while you’re all going on about Palpatine and Vader’s hard on for revenge, you’re going to miss this movie if I run it.’

‘Let’s talk about the prequels and Palpatine and all for a moment more,’ said Bruce. ‘I like where this is going.’

‘Fair enough,’ agreed Sam. ‘For what it’s worth, Palpatine did hide the news of Luke’s birth from Vader. He lied to him from the beginning. Why would he stop? Also, he needed to cut any possible ties or competition. One master, one apprentice, remember?’

‘True,’ agreed Natasha. ‘Palpatine couldn’t risk Vader going rogue. Not after all the work he put into things. And to have Vader dependent on him meant that the Sith training could continue without any interruptions.’

‘Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?’ asked Bucky, wryly, tilting his head towards Natasha.

Natasha’s lips quirked upwards in answer. ‘A wee bit.’

‘Ugh. But when Vader learned he had a son, he was going to go after him so he could get his revenge on Palpatine,’ said Wanda.

‘Probably,’ said Sam. ‘At any rate, he wanted his son at his side.’

‘Ok. I think we’re caught up, here. Luke had his father’s lightsaber and lost it so he had to make another, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yup. Every Jedi makes their own lightsaber. It’s the last step in their training. Obi-Wan helped Luke because Luke needed the tutelage to construct it. But he had to find the Kyber crystal by himself,’ answered Clint.

‘Is it in the book?’ asked Bucky, curious.

‘It is. Briefly,’ answered Clint. ‘You’d like to read the book version of this movie, Bucky. There’s a lot more in it.’

‘But Luke has to finish training, remember? He promised Master Yoda he would come back,’ said Bucky.

‘Let’s see how it plays out in the movie,’ suggested Sam.

‘Fair enough. Let’s watch,’ requested Bucky. He smiled when the movie started up again.

‘So there’s two familiar faces,’ teased Scott.

‘Poor Artoo. Remember the last movie of the prequel? They wiped Threepio’s memory but left Artoo’s intact,’ said Bruce.

‘Artoo’s seen some huge shit go down,’ said Tony with a laugh. ‘If he could only talk about it.’

‘Good thing he can’t or he’d have been wiped as well,’ pointed out Wanda.

‘I’m amused,’ said Bucky. ‘Does Threepio ever stop complaining?’

‘I think that’s his status quo,’ answered Steve. ‘It’s how he copes with stressful situations. He can’t help but gripe about it.’

‘See Artoo though? He’s just rolling like a boss,’ said Scott. ‘If I could be anyone, I think I’d be Artoo.’

‘Uh…. that’s Jabba the Hutt,’ said Sam. ‘Remember we saw the Hutts briefly in the prequel? The first movie with Anakin racing in his podracer?’

‘Oh, sure. He’s kind of like a gangster, huh?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. The Hutts run everything,’ explained Sam.

‘Well, now at least we know where Han is at,’ quipped Scott. 

‘That’s cold,’ said Tony, admiring. ‘Some wall decoration, huh? I bet Jabba was thrilled when Boba Fett gave him that.’

‘Boba Fett… who was Jango Fett’s son,’ reminded Clint.

‘Whoa. I’m surprised he worked for Vader, given his history with Jedi and all,’ said Scott.

‘Well, if you take into consideration that Vader was hunting down the Jedi and killing them, it’s not that strange after all,’ said Clint.

‘Huh,’ said Tony, impressed. ‘You’re not just a sassy archer, are you? You know all these facts. I never pegged you for a Star Wars geek before.’

Natasha chuckled as Clint grinned happily and said, ‘There’s lots more to me than you think!’

‘Poor Threepio. He’s got to go back up to serve Jabba while Artoo can go on a sail barge,’ said Wanda. ‘Life is hard for droids today.’

‘Did the movie just turn into a musical?’ asked Bucky, staring at the dance number.

‘It’s entertainment? I dunno,’ said Steve. ‘But it all leads up to this scene.’

‘She’s pretty…. and she doesn’t want any part of Jabba,’observed Bucky, watching the dancing girl resist Jabba’s actions.

‘Not really, but no one says no to Jabba, and this is what happens when you do,’ said Wanda.

‘What is that thing under there?’ asked Bucky, wrinkling up his nose in disgust.

‘You’ll find out later,’ promised Sam. 

‘Hang on! That’s Chewie!’ exclaimed Bucky. He sat forward and watched as the bounty hunter bargained with Jabba.

‘Surprise, surprise,’ said Scott. ‘Poor Chewbacca. He always has to be the one who’s captured.’

‘At least it’s a decent bounty and all. I didn’t know Chewbacca even had a bounty on him,’ said Thor.

‘Well, considering that he’s known in the Rebellion, the Empire would have been pleased to capture him. And it looks like Jabba had a bounty on him as well as Han,’ said Clint.

‘True. Oh, hey…. what’s going on there?’ asked Scott.

‘That bounty hunter is up to some funny business,’ said Steve. He took Bucky’s hand and twined his fingers with Bucky’s.

‘That’s some serious sneaking around, there,’ said Bruce. ‘They don’t want to get caught.’

‘Nope… and… oh, hey, they’re reversing the carbonite process,’ said Bucky. 

Bucky squeaked when the bounty hunter took of their helmet and Leia was revealed underneath. 

‘Wait…. this is Luke’s plan?' shouted Bucky explosively, flinging his hands into the air. 'Bringing Leia right into the heart of danger? Is he out of his mind?’

‘Nooo…. you’re not going to go all ‘women can’t take care of themselves,’ are you?’ asked Natasha.

Bucky stared at her a moment and flushed. ‘Uh, no…. I mean, Peggy would have my guts for garters, for starters. No, just that this could go very wrong and see???!!’ he yelped.

‘Well, that isn’t good, no,’ allowed Natasha with a small smile.

‘What I was going to add was that if something happens, there isn’t a backup plan. Who’s going to get her out of there? Lando? He’s undercover,’ pointed out Bucky.

‘Guess you’re just going to have to see for yourself,’ said Wanda, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

Bucky watched and rolled his eyes when Luke walked into Jabba’s stronghold. ‘Oh, great. Perfect. Look, it’s Steve!’

Thor chortled as Steve shot Bucky a mortified look.

‘I wouldn’t do anything like that!’ protested Steve.

‘Azzano,’ said Bucky, succinctly.

Steve shut his mouth and glowered at Bucky while everyone else hid their smiles behind their hands.

‘Am I to assume Luke knows what he’s doing here?’ asked Bucky, sarcasm heavy in his voice.

‘Trust in the Force, Bucky,’ teased Scott.

‘Yeah. Think like Chirrut,’ added Sam.

‘Well, there’s that,’ agreed Bucky. ‘OK, let’s see what’s up Luke’s sleeve.’

‘I would not want to fight that thing without a gun,’ commented Sam as Luke faced the Rancor.

‘That’s one ugly beastie,’ said Thor. ‘I wonder how long it’s lived down there.’

‘Maybe they got it as a baby? And raised it there?’ said Sam.

‘Maybe. Who the hell sees one of these creatures though and thinks, ‘Hey, I’m going to capture this and get a job so it can eat other beings?’ asked Scott.

‘The Rancor’s owner, obviously,’ said Bruce, shrugging. 

‘And now he’s out of a job,’ said Sam.

‘Good job, Luke,’ said Bucky. ‘Guess being a Jedi is good for something after all.’

‘So there they all are…. Reunited and it feels so good!’ warbled Scott. 

Sam threw a pillow that smacked Scott in the face. ‘Enough from the cheap seats!’

Bucky said,.‘I take my previous words back. Luke’s got this handled.’

‘So there they are, on the sand barge. And there’s Han, still doubting Luke’s abilities,’ said Sam. ‘At least his vision is getting better.’

‘Oh, gross. That’s a Sarlacc? That thing’s disgusting,’ said Bucky, wrinkling his nose.

‘It’s pretty ugly. It slowly digests its prey for a thousand years. That would suck,’ said Scott.

‘Well, Luke gave Jabba a last chance, and there goes Artoo. Something’s up,’ commented Bucky, leaning forward.

‘The music is the biggest cue. John Williams can’t resist teasing the audience,’ laughed Wanda.

‘True…. and there goes Luke!’ exclaimed Scott.

‘Whoa, nice, Artoo!” complimented Bucky. He crowed as Luke’s lightsaber arced neatly through the air and landed in Luke’s hand.

‘That put Jabba’s undies in a twist,’ smirked Tony. ‘There’s going to be all sorts of pandemonium now.’

‘This shows that a Jedi can use the Force for good. Luke is doing exactly what he was taught and what his father turned away from,’ pointed out Jane.

‘There goes Leia! She wasn’t going to sit this out,’ said Bucky. ‘See, she’s going to take care of Jabba. It’s the perfect time to do it, too.’

‘If I had seen ‘Return of the Jedi’ when I’d been younger, Leia definitely would have been my hero,’ said Natasha. 

‘She was my hero,’ said Sam, fervently. ‘Look at her. She can take care of herself, she’s a princess, a diplomat, a senator… She knows her way around a blaster and she’s not afraid to get her hands dirty.’

‘Looks like they’re cleaning up house. Nice job with getting rid of Boba Fett, too. Even if it was by accident,’ remarked Bucky.

‘So think on this for a moment. Anakin Skywalker was a slave in the Hutt territory. Luke’s pretty much taken care of any payback. Wonder what Anakin would have thought of that,’ pointed out Clint.

‘Huh. He would have approved, knowing how he’s not afraid to take care of business,’ said Scott.

‘Yeah. And if he were already falling to the Dark side of the Force, he wouldn’t have blinked an eye,’ added Sam.

‘Does anyone take over the Hutt territory?’ asked Bruce. ‘I mean, just out of interest… that’s leaving quite the power vacuum.’

‘I do believe someone does. In one of the books, it’s his son,’ answered Clint. ‘But I’m not exactly sure.’

‘Huh. Oh, and there goes Luke and Artoo. He’s going to go back and see Yoda and finish his training,’ said Bucky. ‘I wonder how long it’d been since he last saw Yoda.’

‘Only a year,’ said Clint. ‘Not too much time has passed here.’

‘So Luke was pretty damn busy in a year. Reconstructed a new lightsaber, got a rescue plan and mission going for Han, and continued his training on the side,’ said Steve.

‘And now he’s going back to see Yoda and hello, majestic music! Looks like it’s time for a meeting!’ exclaimed Bucky.

‘And now we get to see how the other side lives,’ remarked Scott as he watched the pomp and circumstance on the new Death Star.

Thor snorted. ‘Look at that. Just like in Asgard, full troops for inspection. Plenty of manpower on display.’

‘Is that what they’re calling it these days?’ quipped Scott. 

‘So the Emperor is sure that everything is going the way he wants it to go. Does he know his protegee is really angry at him?’ asked Wanda.

‘No. Vader isn’t stupid. He’s got an ace up his sleeve, I’m sure,’ answered Sam.

‘Ohhh…. Master Yoda is so old!’ exclaimed Wanda, her eyes wide. She watched as Yoda carefully made his way to the fireplace.

‘See? It’s as Yoda said. Nine hundred years is pretty damn old for anyone. He’s tired and he’s old and he’s ready to let things go,’ said Sam.

‘This is a hard conversation,’ murmured Natasha. ‘Luke is asking questions he deserves answers to but he’s tugging on a thread that will be hurtful to him, no matter what.’

‘And there we go…. Vader is Luke’s father. OK, here’s what I want to know. How many people in the movie theater screamed?’ asked Bucky.

‘Plenty,’ answered Sam wryly as Clint and Scott nodded in agreement.

‘And so Luke just has to face Vader and he’s finally a Jedi. Not like that’s hard or anything,’ said Tony, sarcastically.

‘Well, it’s probably for the best, and it’s something he’d want to do anyway,’ pointed out Bruce.

‘Yoda faded away, like Obi-Wan did. That must be something a Jedi can do,’ said Wanda.

‘It is. Yoda is one with the Force,’ said Clint.

‘Oh, hey. Speaking of Obi-Wan,’ said Bucky. ‘He’s not looking too shabby for having been cut down by a lightsaber.’

Steve rolled his eyes and smiled when Obi-Wan defensively said to Luke that what he told him was true from a certain point of view. 

‘Obi-Wan needs to get better at defending himself. That was weak,’ snickered Bucky.

‘Well, I think he was trying to spare Luke some pain. I mean, how exactly do you say, ‘your father has turned into a creature of darkness and destruction, sorry, kid,’’ said Sam.

‘Perhaps Anakin shouldn’t have done that in the first place. And maybe, you know, asked his wife what she wanted,’ retorted Jane tartly.

‘That is true,’ allowed Sam. ‘Anakin made some poor decisions.’

Scott just scooted forward so he could watch Bucky’s face.

‘So here is where Luke finds out he has a twin sister? Don’t even think of entertaining any thoughts about courting her because that’s just…. no,’ said Bucky sternly, pointing a finger at the screen.

‘You know that some people were really disappointed they were siblings,’ said Scott.

‘Life is disappointment,’ replied Bucky. 

‘Ouch. I think we need some aloe for that one,’ said Bruce.

‘But now Luke knows what’s at stake when he confronts Vader again. Nothing like a little pressure to make things really interesting,’ drawled Clint.

‘He can handle it. I’m just worried about the Emperor and what he has in store,’ said Bucky.

‘We’ll find out,’ said Sam.

‘The rebel alliance is getting together for one last go,’ intoned Tony. ‘They are going to hopefully try and take down the Emperor.’

‘Could you imagine? It’s the impossible dream come to life. A shot at the Emperor and destroying the biggest weapon the Empire has? That would be incredible,’ gushed Scott.

‘Sure would be. _If_ they can pull it off. And if it isn’t a set up,’ said Bucky, flatly.

‘Well, they got to try, don’t they? Even if it were a set up, sometimes you just go ahead and do it because it’s worth the risk,’ said Scott.

‘We don’t know what that’s like at all,’ said Clint, rolling his eyes.

Natasha snorted next to him and elbowed him in the ribs.

‘Ooo! There she is!’ exclaimed Sam.

‘That’s who you were talking about, right? Mon Mothma? She looks regal as ever,’ said Bucky. 

‘I think if I would have a crush on anyone, it would be her,’ said Sam. ‘I mean, I like Princess Leia and all, but Mon Mothma is the head of the Rebellion. And she’s been fighting Palpatine ever since he dissolved the Galactic Senate.’

‘Right! I forgot to mention that. So after Palpatine became head honcho there, he dissolved the Senate and quit all pretenses of being any friend to the Republic. Remember in ‘Star Wars’ when that was announced?’ reminded Scott.

‘So that’s when the Empire really got going,’ said Bucky.

‘Yup,’ said Sam. ‘And Mon Mothma took the fight underground, helped form the Rebellion, and has been fighting ever since. Leia has been learning from her.’

‘Lando is there! He looks pretty good,’ commented Wanda.

‘He does. He’s a general now. Looks like he’s going to spearhead the attack on the Death Star,’ said Bucky.

‘I like Admiral Ackbar, too. I have to admit, I always get cravings for seafood when I see him, though,’ snickered Scott.

Bucky tossed a pillow at Scott who casually batted it aside, cackling with delight. 

‘He’s leading the fleet, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘He is. It really is their last ditch effort. They win and they dismantle the Empire…. they lose and the Rebellion is done. High stakes,’ said Bruce.

‘Oh, nice potshot there, Leia,’ murmured Jane. She grinned up at Thor, who laughed at the look at Han’s face.

‘He kept that quiet. General Solo…. for someone who didn’t want to get involved with any of this, he’s pretty much in the thick of it, isn’t he?’ asked Bucky.

‘Sounds like someone else I know,’ teased Steve, leaning over to kiss Bucky’s cheek.

‘Hey! I was only making sure you weren’t gonna get in more trouble. Like it helped at all!’ exclaimed Bucky, flinging his hands out dramatically.

‘Luke’s got that black aesthetic down pat. Looking pretty sharp there,’ said Scott approvingly.

‘Like father, like son,’ teased Sam.

Wanda and Natasha exchanged glances and rolled their eyes.

‘So they’re going to Endor,’ said Bucky. 

‘Yup. Hey, anyone catch that line that Mon Mothma said? ‘Many Bothans died to get us this information’? Looks like that would be an amazing story as well,’ said Clint.

‘I imagine it was a bit along the lines of Rogue One,’ suggested Bruce.

‘Possibly. Oh, that’s a great line, ‘Fly casual’.... Hey, try to remember that the next time we take a plane somewhere,’ hooted Scott.

‘You gotta wonder what Luke was thinking. Honestly, did he not know that the Force goes both ways? If he can feel his father, his father can feel him as well. Sheesh,’ scoffed Natasha.

‘Luke would make a horrible spy,’ agreed Clint.

‘He didn’t do too bad rescuing Han,’ argued Scott.

Clint, Natasha, and Bucky exchanged long-suffering looks.

‘That wasn’t spy work. That was infiltration done by someone who is much better suited at it than Luke. Lando was the perfect choice to get inside first. Luke simply strode in and finished it when all other options had been exhausted,’ pointed out Bucky.

‘He planned it, didn’t he?’ asked Scott.

‘He probably did a lot of it. But he had Lando and Chewie to help. Those two know a thing or two when it comes to a long con,’ answered Natasha.

‘I’m not saying Luke isn’t good at being the mastermind or anything. It’s the actual spy work part that he’d be horrible at,’ said Clint.

‘I can agree with that,’ said Scott, nodding.

‘If anyone is going to be a spy in that family, it’s Leia, anyway,’ said Jane. ‘She was raised as a diplomat and a politician. She would run circles around Luke. Like mother, like daughter.’

‘Padme was able to fool a lot of people with that whole handmaiden shell game. Leia would be a shoo-in as her successor,’ said Bucky.

‘Oh, look. The strike force is on the planet. It’s very green. So are their outfits,’ commented Tony. ‘Guess they’re trying for low visibility.’

Bucky cringed as Han cockily made his way through the trees. ‘You know this is going to end poorly.’

‘So do Luke and Leia. See the way they looked at each other? Han thinks he has them fooled but he’s delusional,’ laughed Sam.

‘Which is deliciously ironic,’ snickered Scott.

‘And there we go! Nice going, Han. That’s going to kick off the action, I’m sure,’ said Bucky.

‘Ah, there’s that reckless streak coming to the fore,’ said Thor with a grin. ‘I wonder if those two think before they act, sometimes.’

‘They get that from their father,’ said Jane grumpily.

‘I love this scene,’ said Scott happily. ‘I always wanted a speeder bike.’

‘Hey, do you think after we’re done with the podracer, we could look into making one of those?’ asked Bucky, turning slightly to look at Tony.

‘Don’t see why not. Thor, can your planet handle speeder bikes?’ asked Tony.

‘It can handle most anything,’ said Thor. ‘Perhaps if we built a few of them, we could have a race?’

‘That’s why you’re my favourite alien,’ quipped Tony. ‘Let me see what I can come up with in the next week.’

‘So Luke really knows how to use that lightsaber. That’s one mess taken care of,’ said Sam.

‘And now it’s Leia’s turn,’ said Wanda happily.

‘Sure is. She can handle herself,’ said Natasha. ‘She don’t need no Jedi brother messing with her business.’

‘Uh… that’s kind of a win?’ asked Scott as Leia closed her eyes after she tumbled to safety from her bike.

‘She still took care of things and with only a blaster,’ sniffed Natasha.

‘So here comes Luke back. Oh, geez. Look at Han and Chewie. The music is just perfect, too,’ grinned Scott.

‘Hurry up and wait. That looks awful familiar, doesn’t it, Stevie?’ chuckled Bucky.

‘Sure does. Wonder how long they had to sit there and wonder what the hell happened,’ said Steve.

‘Long enough that Han probably cycled through worry and boredom in equal measures,’ guessed Sam.

‘Yeah, and that sounds familiar, too,’ said Bucky, a smile tugging up the corners of his mouth.

‘Hey, they must have made this movie about us,’ suggested Steve. ‘See, that’s us telling the rest of the troops to go to the meeting place. And there’s the Howling Commandos, heading into danger.’

‘Same story, different day,’ intoned Bucky. ‘Who do you think Threepio would be?’

‘Oh, he’s definitely Falsworth. Remember that time Falsworth got mad because we ran out of tea packets?’ snorted Steve.

‘Ran out of tea packets. How could I forget? ‘We aren’t bloody uncivilized around here, mates,’ and he’d find some. Somehow, somewhere. Yeah, Falsworth is Threepio,’ agreed Bucky.

‘Here’s one of the beings that live on this planet,’ said Clint. ‘He’s an Ewok and his name is Wicket.’

‘That’s a big teddy bear,’ said Bucky, snorting.

‘So you’re saying you’re Wicket,’ said Steve, keeping a straight face. 

‘Just because there were Bucky bears doesn’t mean I am literally a walking cuddly animal,’ said Bucky.

‘Leia is trying to be nice to the little creature,’ noted Wanda.

‘Well, he’s wary for a good reason. Seems the stormtroopers would kill them and make supper with them. They didn’t consider them to be sentient,’ said Clint.

‘That’s horrible!’ gasped Wanda.

‘That’s the Empire in a nutshell. If they can’t use your labour, they’ll figure out a way to use you as a resource, anyway,’ said Clint.

‘See? Leia can take care of herself. She is her mother’s child,’ said Jane with great satisfaction. ‘She had help but she was smart enough to have made a friend who could help her.’

‘At least we know she’s OK,’ said Wanda. ‘And she has an adorable Ewok to help her out.’

‘So there’s our wonderful Star Wars Howling Commandos group. They found Leia’s helmet,’ said Scott.

‘And there’s Chewie, thinking with his stomach,’ put in Sam. 

He chuckled as Han tried to get to Luke’s lightsaber.

‘Who would Chewie be?’ asked Steve.

‘Chewie would be Dum Dum. Absolutely,’ said Bucky. ‘Strength and wily smarts beneath that stupid bowler hat, that was him. Everyone underestimates Chewie.’

‘And Dum Dum liked to eat, too. Falsworth and his tea and Dum Dum and his rations, grumbling about how it wasn’t anything like home cooking. Remember what Morita said?’ asked Steve.

‘Yeah. ‘Thought you didn’t cook, Dum Dum,’ and Dum Dum would look all offended and say, ‘I can make a fried egg,’’ laughed Bucky.

‘And there are the Ewoks. Aren’t they cute?’ cooed Scott.

‘They are cute. Little fierce teddy bears,’ said Wanda with a smile. 

‘Han is pissing them off, though. Han, who is always going to be Dernier to me. Boom today, boom tomorrow!’ exclaimed Bucky.

‘Let’s not get off track, here. Looks like it’s Threepio’s time to shine,’ pointed out Sam.

Bucky laughed at the look on Han’s face. ‘Looks like Dernier did when he was told he couldn’t just go and blow shit up whenever he felt like it.’

‘And there they go back to the village. How did they get them up those trees?’ asked Wanda.

‘Very carefully,’ answered Clint.

‘Luke’s gotta be Gabe Jones. Unflappable Gabe, who would just look at you and then insult you in a language you don’t know,’ mused Bucky.

‘That would be Luke. He’d use the Force to mess with you and then look totally innocent,’ said Steve.

‘Well, this doesn’t look good for Han. Anyone else thinking barbecue?’ asked Scott.

Sam just stared at Scott who looked abashed.

‘That would be wrong in so many ways,’ murmured Wanda. ‘Let’s look at the chef in the group. Bruce?’

‘Han flambé, perhaps?’ teased Bruce.

‘Ewwww,’ commented Wanda.

‘Leia sure looks nice. They must have found a bath for her or something…. and a dress, somehow?’ asked Bucky.

‘Who knew the Ewoks would have their version of ‘Project Runway’ in their village?’ quipped Scott.

‘Oh, nice try, Leia. See? Han flambé,’ said Bruce.

‘Luke’s trying, anyway, even though Threepio isn’t getting it,’ laughed Steve.

‘Poor Threepio. He’s trying to be ethical and everything and Luke’s like, nah, we gotta work with this,’ said Natasha.

‘And look at Threepio go. All majestic and everything,’ said Bucky. ‘Luke knows how to run a con, no doubt about it.’

‘Well, everyone is happy now! Everyone except, uh, Artoo,’ amended Sam, chuckling as Artoo chased an Ewok.

‘And there we have the last of our happy group. Jim Morita, everyone,’ announced Bucky.

‘I thought Jim was the one who kept his cool in hot situations as your medic,’ said Tony, puzzlement in his voice.

‘Yeah, as our medic, sure. As one of the guys? We learned pretty quickly not to mess with Jim. Because it might take a week but you’ll be sorry you did,’ explained Steve while Bucky nodded.

‘Oh, Jesus. Remember that time Dernier pissed him off? And Jim waited until we got to that one city where we could actually get a real meal?’ asked Bucky.

Steve groaned. ‘How could I forget? Turned out that we’d be in the one city where Jim knew the staff at this restaurant. Let’s just say Dernier had to use the toilet every half hour for three days.’

‘That must have not been any fun while you were all out and about,’ said Scott.

‘It was about as much fun as you could imagine,’ said Bucky, rolling his eyes. ‘Dernier kept yelling his ass was chapped from wiping it so much. You would have thought maybe that would have been one memory that could have been wiped but nope. Gotta keep seeing his red butt cheeks because he dropped trou to show us.’

‘Good times with the Howling Commandos. How come none of this was in the history books?’ demanded Sam. ‘I would have read that and more if those stories were in there.’

‘They sanitized it pretty good. All the curse words and all the dirty tricks…. the women and the drinking…. none of that is in there,’ said Steve.

‘We should write our autobiographies, Stevie. We could call it, ‘Howlies, no’ because that’s what you said a lot,’ laughed Bucky.

‘Oh, here’s a big scene!’ interrupted Scott.

Bucky watched as Luke talked to Leia. ‘Wait a minute…. if Leia remembered her mother, then what the hell was going on in the third prequel?’

‘Uh oh,’ whispered Clint as Sam flung out his hands in disgust.

‘Right??? That’s what I’m saying. Continuity is a good thing in movies that follow one another and there is no damn excuse for this shoddiness,’ griped Sam.

‘Go on, Sam. Tell us how you really feel,’ snickered Tony.

Sam pointed at him. ‘Better watch it or I’ll ask Scott to turn into Tic Tac and hide in your underwear. Give you a wake up call one morning.’

‘I agree with Sam,’ spoke up Jane, sitting up and looking like royalty. ‘There is no way Padme would die of a broken heart. She might have had a broken heart, but she is made of stronger stuff.’

‘I like the idea of her living with the Organas for a while and raising Leia until she died,’ said Sam. ‘I imagine her running with Leia to safety and then staying as long as she could. She’d always be in danger of losing her life.’

‘See, that makes more sense to me,’ agreed Bruce. ‘Maybe Palpatine sent an assassin after her. He wanted to tie up loose ends. Maybe he had her murdered and Vader found out about it.’

‘And that’s when he started plotting against his so-called Master. And when he found out about Luke, he figured he’d have an ally…. someone he could turn to the dark side of the Force to honour and avenge his mother,’ said Sam.

Scott stared at Sam and then nodded. ‘I’m with Sam on this one. That would have made a lot more sense.’

‘But no. We have this,’ groused Sam again, crossing his arms across his chest.

‘Awww…. now Leia knows that Vader is her father. OK, how fucking weird would that be?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. The guy who tortured her and destroyed her adopted planet turns out to be her dad. That’s awkward,’ said Steve.

‘Could you imagine Fathers’ Day in the Skywalker household at this point?’ asked Scott.

‘The card alone…. ‘Dad, you’re the worst dad ever, you murdered my other dad and all my friends and you tortured me Happy awful day to you!’.... and maybe a picture of a weeping kitten on the front,’ suggested Clint.

Everyone turned to stare at Clint. ‘What? Like it isn’t true or anything,’ pointed out Clint.

‘When you say other dad, I’m imagining Vader and Bail Organa as partners raising Leia or something,’ said Scott.

‘That’s totally…. no, why do you come up with these things?’ moaned Clint.

‘Payback’s a bitch,’ returned Scott. ‘Weeping kittens…. you bad, bad man.’

‘Han is a good egg,’ put in Wanda. ‘See? I think he likes Leia.’

‘Pretty sure he does. I mean, he’s been mooning after her for two other movies now,’ teased Sam.

‘So here we are. The moment we’ve all been waiting for. Luke versuss Vader,’ said Tony in his best announcer voice.

‘Luke’s going to try, isn’t he?’ asked Wanda.

‘It’s not a bad thing to try,’ said Bruce. ‘I have to say that I’m glad he thinks Vader is redeemable.’

‘So if he redeemed him and Vader turned on the Emperor, that would be balancing the Force, right? He’d still fulfill that prophecy, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah. He would,’ answered Sam. ‘I mean, in a long way around, horrible things happening from point A to point Z but he’d do it.’

‘See, this is what I think of this whole redemption thing,’ confessed Bucky. ‘I did horrible things and yet… here I am, able to live my life almost where I started, but not quite. It’s unreal to me sometimes.’

‘I hear you,’ said Tony, unexpectedly. ‘I wanted to redeem myself as well. I didn’t want to be the merchant of death anymore. I wanted to do something different. Something that would honour Yinsen. I hope I’ve succeeded a little.’

‘I think Yinsen would be proud of you, Tony,’ said Steve. ‘The things you’ve built and the renewable energy inventions, and what you did when the Chitauri invaded…. Yinsen would have approved.’

‘Thank you,’ said Tony, quietly. He met Steve’s eyes and smiled without a trace of sarcasm or bitterness.

Steve looked back at Tony and smiled as well, relief and joy on his face. He nodded at Tony whose face reflected the same emotions. Something seemed to settle between them, balancing and stabilizing silently.

‘They met up with the rest of their team,’ said Scott. ‘ You think they used a walkie talkie or something so they could let their team know they weren’t eaten by something?’

‘You’d think so,’ answered Bucky. ‘It’s not like they’re going to show the unexciting bits.’

‘Who wants to see that, anyway? I’m waiting for some kicking the Emperor’s ass action,’ said Scott.

‘Hey, this looks like a good start,’ commented Bucky. He watched as the strike team infiltrated the bunker.

‘And the rebel fleet is good to go,’ added Sam.

‘Then Vader and Luke arrive at the Death Star,’ finished Scott. ‘Wait. So if Luke is on the Death Star, that means that he knows he’ll die when they blow it up.’

‘I think Luke is hoping they can get off the damn thing before that happens,’ pointed out Clint.

‘Maybe. I mean, Luke might be just fine with the win for the Alliance and sacrificing his life and all,’ suggested Thor.

‘I think he still hopes he can turn his father to the light side of the Force. Last minute save and all,’ said Wanda, quietly.

‘I’m going with Wanda,’ announced Tony.

‘And now it all starts going to pieces,’ muttered Bruce.

‘The Emperor knows something, doesn’t he?’ asked Bucky. ‘He’s not worried at all. He knows all about the plans and he’s going to trap the Rebels. Something’s up.’

‘Crap. And the jig is up,’ said Steve, frowning. ‘That clearing looks a hell of a lot different than it did when they first entered it.’

‘Yup. Trap. And here comes the Rebel fleet,’ said Scott.

‘See, this is why they should always have someone like Lando on their team,’ said Clint. ‘He figured out what was going on before anyone else did. They now have to maneuver those big ships so they won’t explode onto the shield.’

‘There’s the iconic line of the movie! ‘It’s a trap!’,’ said Sam along with Ackbar, grinning.

‘You just think you’re funny,’ drawled Bucky. 

‘At least you know why we laughed before,’ said Scott while Clint nodded.

Bucky rolled his eyes and sighed.

‘And here comes the TIE fighters!’ exclaimed Sam.

‘Anyone else listening to the music? John Williams always writes such great action music,’ said Natasha happily.

‘This is going to be a lop-sided battle. On one side, the Empire with guns and all of that. On the other side, the Rebels with some guns and a whole lot of earlier weapons,’ commented Scott. ‘I don’t know if I’d want to go up against a two legged AT-AT with a spear.’

‘Depends on where you throw the spear,’ pointed out Tony. ‘Or maybe you have arrows you can jam into the joints. But the odds are stacked against them, I agree.’

‘The Emperor is going to have his big moment. He looks so smug, the asshole,’ said Scott. ‘Why do the supervillains always look the same? They must have read a book or something… practiced facial expressions in the mirror.’

‘I wasn’t aware Palpatine could even move the muscles on his face,’ mused Bruce. 

‘Hah! And oh shit!’ yelped Scott. ‘That…. that’s the big moment!’

‘A ‘fully operational Death Star’ that can disintegrate ships. Great. Fantastic,’ said Bucky, flatly.

‘They’ll have to come up with another plan, then,’ said Steve. He shrugged as Bucky glared at him. ‘What? Like we didn’t come up with a new plan when things went to shit.’

‘Like we don’t still come up with a new plan when things go to shit,’ added Clint with a sharp laugh.

‘Very true,’ admitted Bucky. 

‘And there goes Luke…. His friends are his weakness, as Palpatine said,’ observed Sam, not taking his eyes away from the screen as Luke and Vader cross lightsabers in front of Palpatine’s gloating face.

‘Well, Palpatine’s got a few weaknesses as well. But yeah… now comes the big showdown. I’m sure this fits nicely within Palpatine’s plans,’ said Natasha.

‘You know, when I fought you on that final bridge, Buck, I really didn’t want to. I had to get past you and that was the only way. This is Luke’s final fight, I think, too,’ said Steve, softly. 

‘Yeah…. Yoda was right. Luke had to confront Vader so he could become a Jedi. But what a crappy way to finally be that person he wants to be,’ said Bucky.

‘I think any person who faces their demons or the hardest parts has to have that final reckoning. There’s a reason why this is a trope,’ said Scott.

‘Yeah. All the heroes and stories of old? Their final journey, their final test…. it’s pretty much standard,’ commented Tony. ‘This is the stuff of myth and legends.’

‘Hey, Stevie, we’re the stuff of myth and legends,’ teased Bucky, his smile growing wider at Tony’s huff of amusement.

‘And those poor little Ewoks are getting the brunt of it,’ said Thor. ‘Tis always the worst sacrifices to gain the least.’

‘See, Luke has to do the hero speech,’ said Natasha, exasperation colouring her voice. ‘Luke, you’re going to get killed.’

‘If he hadn’t ducked, he would have been,’ pointed out Clint.

‘And high in the sky, it’s absolute chaos,’ said Sam. ‘This reminds me of a few flying missions.’

‘Nothing like tracer bullets to add some spice to things, eh?’ said Clint, rolling his eyes.

‘Those missiles aren’t any pushovers, either,’ answered Sam.

‘You gotta move closer to the Star Destroyers because then the Death Star won’t be able to target the Rebel ships,’ agreed Bruce. ‘Lando knows what he’s talking about.’

‘True. Poor Admiral Ackbar. He’s learning some guerilla fighting techniques on the fly,’ said Natasha, amused.

‘It’s not like they don’t know how to do that, it’s just on that scale with those huge ships…. unprecedented,’ said Clint.

‘Oh, no…. I’m not disagreeing or anything. I know they’ve had to use those covert fighting techniques to survive all these years. It’s just got to be disconcerting to have to make those decisions while everything is moving so fast,’ explained Natasha.

‘Oh, and there we go! Luke, you noodle head!’ exclaimed Scott.

‘Strong emotions are gonna fuck you over every time,’ muttered Clint. He winced when Vader found out about Leia from Luke’s roiled thoughts.

‘Uh oh. That’s what sets him off. Vader should have just kept his mouth shut,’ said Sam.

‘If he was looking to get a reaction out of Luke, he got one,’ added Bucky. ‘Oh, geez. Brotherly love is great, isn’t it?’

Sam and Scott exchanged looks and then visibly pressed their lips together.

Clint said, ‘Well, payback is a bitch, isn’t it?’ as Luke cut off Vader’s hand at the wrist.

‘Do you think Vader at this point is wondering about his life choices?’ wondered Bruce.

‘He should be. His decision making has been awful. This is why I think of Padme surviving because she’s simply too damn pissed to just die from a broken heart. He did all these atrocities in her name. That had to have been the last straw,’ said Jane.

‘Padme would have been horrified, I think. She would never have wanted Anakin to do what he did to save her,’ said Wanda. ‘Besides, it’s a self-fulfilling sort of thing, anyway. He was afraid of losing her, but by what he did, he lost her irrevocably.’

Jane nodded. ‘Yes. That is it exactly. She could still love him, but he turned into a monster. She would never side with a monster.’

‘It had to be hard, though. To see what he became,’ said Wanda.

‘It probably was. I know that if it were me, as much as it hurt and as much as I wished for a different ending, I’d have to live with the reality of the situation. That doesn’t mean my heart wouldn’t ache for what could have been,’ said Jane.

‘Luckily enough, that didn’t happen to you,’ said Thor, bending over to kiss the top of Jane’s head and hold her tighter against him.

‘And there goes Luke, standing his ground. That’s a great line,’ said Scott, approvingly.

‘Yeah. He told the Emperor something, didn’t he?’ asked Steve.

‘This is not going to end well, though,’ said Tony. ‘Emperor Shar-Pei is most displeased.’

Steve choked and laughed. ‘Thanks, Tony. I’m never going to forget that.’

Tony preened. ‘My job here is done.’

‘Ok, we were all busy talking about Luke and all…. anyone catch Leia giving Han’s line back to him?’ asked Sam.

‘Sure! That ‘I know’ response? That was epic,’ responded Clint.

‘Leia is epic,’ said Jane with a grin.

‘Oh hey! The Emperor is using Force lightning. That’s going to kill Luke!’ exclaimed Scott.

‘Look at Vader. He doesn’t know what to do,’ said Steve.

‘Well, he’s had his master for so long, but he also wants to rule the galaxy with Luke, and that’s his son… he’s not going to be neutral for long,’ predicted Bucky.

‘There you go! See, Vader is going to do the right thing after all!’ yelled Scott. 

‘That’s gotta feel good,’ remarked Sam, watching as Vader tossed the screaming Emperor over the side of the reactor.

‘Take that for your bullshit! And that for your lies! And that for destroying my life!’ put in Clint.

‘Well, the shield is gone,’ said Natasha.

‘Hey, when Han comes running out and is telling everyone to get back, everyone better listen,’ added Scott.

‘That’s… that’s pretty big inside. Lando is going to have to take care of the reactor,’ said Steve.

‘Wedge can’t. He’s got the side stuff, anyways. Nice to see Wedge in all three movies,’ noted Bucky. 

‘They at least got that continuity right,’ commented Sam with a wry smile.

‘Hurrah. Can’t get Padme’s story to match up but at least we have the same Rebel pilot in all three movies,’ said Jane, dryly while Thor choked on his root beer next to her.

‘So salty, Jane,’ teased Sam who laughed when Jane had to pat the back of Thor’s back as he began wheezing.

‘Somehow Luke managed to drag Vader to a ship?’ asked Scott, disbelievingly. ‘Don’t you think anyone would notice that?’

‘Well, at this point, everything’s going to hell and people are fleeing or running around or just breaking down,’ said Sam. ‘Don’t think anyone’s going to pay attention to two people who are sneaking around in the shadows.’

‘We get to finally see his face,’ said Bucky. ‘We’ve had glimpses before but never got to see his face.’

‘Not after the last prequel movie, when Obi-Wan left him. No,’ said Bruce. ‘Palpatine found him and encased him in that suit. Which also kept him alive for the most part.’

‘Vader knows he’s dying. He just wants to see his son’s face,’ murmured Steve. 

They watched in silence as Vader spoke to Luke. 

‘Luke won’t leave him,’ said Scott. 

‘And Vader did balance the Force in the end. Though no one could have predicted how that would have happened,’ said Sam.

‘I wonder if things had been different for Vader,’ said Steve. Like if he had been treated differently, if he could have spent time with his mother, if he had been listened to…. if that would have kept the balance without all of the horrible things that happened.’

‘Maybe? I mean, if Vader could have had his family with Padme, could have helped raise the younglings and his own children, maybe he could have maintained the balance. Or maybe he could have gone after Palpatine with the Jedi Council and ended things before they began,’ said Natasha.

‘Oh, that sort of thing is tricky because there’s so much that could go wrong and so much that has to go exactly right,’ reminded Sam. ‘Palpatine could have come after their children. He could have tried to take Luke or Leia.’

Jane straightened from her relaxed position quickly. ‘That would have been a foolish thing to do. Padme would have taught the children to defend themselves. And Anakin would have already started training them in the Force.’

‘But here we have Luke, standing in front of the funeral pyre. It’s almost grotesque, seeing him and his loss with the rest of the galaxy’s celebration,’ mused Scott.

‘Kind of…. but the rest of the galaxy suffered under Vader. There were many atrocities and horrors committed by the Empire. They have no love or grief for him and it’s understandable,’ said Bruce.

‘True,’ agreed Scott. ‘Still. One person grieving…. although it’s probably for what might have been as much as it is for the now.’

‘Definitely the might have beens,’ said Wanda. ‘When I think of Pietro, I think of what might have happened if we had reached out, if we had not allowed ourselves to be manipulated. Our grief was overwhelming. It made us vulnerable.’

‘It was understandable,’ said Tony, quietly. ‘I thought that my legacy, my past was long gone after I stopped the weapons division and moved onto better things. But I keep forgetting that what I’d done, what my father had done, had a long reach and a long history. I’m sorry, Wanda.’

‘I know you are,’ said Wanda. ‘I struggle with how things could have been different, but I also know that now, things are good. And Pietro would want me to go on and enjoy my life, to enjoy learning about myself and growing as a person. It just takes time. Luke will have to understand that, too.’

‘Luke is now going to join his sister and his probable brother-in-law,’ smirked Scott.

‘We were pretty busy talking earlier, but did you see the look on Han’s face when Leia told him she was Luke’s brother?’ laughed Clint.

‘Uh, yes. And Han’s thinking back to Hoth at that very moment. I know I would be,’ muttered Bucky.

Sam and Scott chuckled together when Bucky shot them dirty looks.

‘There they all are. Lando and Chewie and Wedge…. the droids…. Luke, Leia, and Han,’ sighed Wanda happily.

‘There’s Anakin…. oooo, a young Anakin,’ commented Bucky.

Sam made a disgusted noise. ‘They redid that. There was an older version of Anakin, but they replaced him with well, the young Anakin.’

‘Sam, never change,’ teased Natasha.

‘This is OK, though,’ said Bucky. ‘I’m glad he’s with Yoda and Obi-Wan again. Do you think they’ll talk things out?’

‘I’m pretty sure the fact that he is even there is pretty huge to them,’ pointed out Clint. ‘He’s on the Light side of the Force. It means he redeemed himself in the end and fulfilled the prophecy.’

‘You know who’s missing here? That hot Jedi dude,’ frowned Bucky.

‘Oh, Qui-Gon! You have a point. I wonder why they didn’t put him in there,’ said Scott.

‘Well, if they’re going to do that, they might as well put in Mace Windu and all the other Jedi, too,’ said Bruce. ‘I think they wanted to keep it to the ones who were influential to Luke. This trilogy is his story, after all.’

‘That makes the most sense. He’d never met anyone else. You think they’ll visit Luke and Leia?’ asked Bucky.

‘I know they will. Anakin will want to talk to his son, maybe think about talking to his daughter, and Obi-Wan will always be there to help out. Yoda as well,’ said Sam.

‘Oh, sure. Can you imagine the first conversation between Leia and Anakin? Worst moment ever for Anakin,’ laughed Clint.

Jane sniffed. ‘Best he doesn’t try to find Padme. He wants the worst conversation? He can try and find her and apologize.’

‘That was pretty good,’ said Bucky. ‘I liked this one.’

‘You got a sense for the whole story with the prequels, Rogue One, and now these movies,’ said Scott.

‘I did. I understand why it’s called a space opera now. It really does sprawl, doesn’t it? Just like those old Buck Rogers stories,’ said Bucky.

‘Just like,’ agreed Steve. ‘One movie left, right?’ 

‘One movie left. Should we go for the gusto and just watch it?’ asked Sam.

‘Might as well. Don’t know when we’ll get the chance again. I have some stuff I need to do and I need to spend time with my daughter,’ answered Scott.

‘And I have a huge science conference in three days. I won’t be available for probably a month after that,’ said Jane.

‘I think we’ll want a few days to finish up the podracer, too,’ said Tony. ‘That and it shouldn’t take too long to whip up a speeder bike.’

‘That will occupy my time nicely while Jane is busy meeting with her fellow scientists,’ smiled Thor.

‘I’ll come back and you will all have to show me how they work,’ said Jane.

‘Perfect. Everyone else, should we just watch ‘The Force Awakens’?’ asked Sam.

‘I’m in,’ said Natasha while Wanda nodded her agreement.

‘Sure,’ said Bruce. ‘I’ve got some experiments to catch up on, too. It would be best if we watched this now so I can get those done.’

‘I gotta get back to the farm, too. Laura wants me to help with expanding the barn,’ said Clint.

‘Do you want some help with that?’ asked Thor. ‘I could come by for a few days.’

‘Me, too,’ said Tony. ‘Bucky, Steve, you wanna head down to help the job go by faster?’

‘Bucky, you’ll like it a lot. It’s a great place and we can fish and swim and rest there,’ said Steve.

‘Sounds pretty good to me, Stevie. Clint’s invited me before but I wasn’t able to go,’ said Bucky.

‘Let’s take a ten minute break and then we’ll start up ‘The Force Awakens.’ Bucky, you’re going to really like this one, too,’ said Scott.

‘I liked most of it,’ said Sam.

‘No spoilers, Sam,’ warned Natasha.

‘I wasn’t going to say anything. I’m just saying I liked most of it. And not because it was a bad movie. It was great. You’ll see,’ said Sam.

‘Guess I will. I’m gonna get some more popcorn. See you all in ten!’ exclaimed Bucky.


	9. The Force Awakens or In Which Steve Makes a Decision

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone adores BB-8, Finn, Rey, and Poe. Kylo Ren, not so much.
> 
> A momentous decision by Steve and an invitation to Sam.

Steve put his arm around Bucky as everyone else settled into their seats.

‘I think we’re good to go now. Did everyone take a bathroom break?’ asked Steve.

‘Yes, Dad,’ deadpanned Scott while Clint cackled.

Steve only rolled his eyes at them both while Tony cued up the next movie.

‘OK, so this is the first of the new trilogy. This takes place after ‘Return of the Jedi’ and several years after the Rebellion won,’ explained Sam.

‘We get a little backstory but not everything. It’ll probably be spun out over the three movies,’ added Scott.

‘OK. I’m excited to see what has happened,’ said Bucky.

‘I never saw this one,’ said Wanda. ‘We were.... busy at the time.’

‘I don’t think many of us were able to see it. Who’s seen this?’ asked Natasha.

Sam, Scott, Clint, Tony, and Bruce raised their hands.

‘This will be great fun for the rest of us, then. We get to experience it firsthand together!’ exclaimed Thor happily.

‘And here is the opening crawl,’ said Clint.

‘This is set 30 years after the Rebellion won. So everyone’s a little older now,’ said Scott.

‘Aren’t we all?’ asked Natasha with a small smile.

‘You know what’s really cool? The fact that there are a new generation of ‘Star Wars’ fans who are watching it with the first trilogy fans. Like, those kids grew up and had children, and now their children are watching this movie with them. That has to be so awesome!’ said Steve.

‘It really is. I took my kids to see this one. They were amazed and loved the movie. It was an experience money can’t buy,’ said Clint.

‘Look, at… holy shit. Luke is missing? What happened? What is this First Order? How did everything fall apart?’ asked Bucky.

‘Whoa, whoa… hold on, Buck. Everything will be explained, I’m sure,’ said Steve, rubbing Bucky’s back.

‘But… Luke is gone? How? Why?’ asked Bucky, surprise on his face..

‘You’ll find out,’ said Sam. ‘This whole First Order thing is a little more worrisome.’

‘Looks like Leia is doing what she does best,’ commented Natasha. ‘It doesn’t surprise me one bit. Can’t take the Rebellion out of the girl, even when there isn’t any Rebellion going on.’

‘So who is this Poe guy? And who is that old guy?’ asked Bucky.

‘You’ll find out more about Poe. The old guy is a traveler of the galaxies. He believed in the Jedi and knew Jedi lore. He’s handing Poe some information about Luke,’ answered Clint.

‘And here come the bad guys. What is that cute little robot?’ asked Wanda, leaning forward to study the orange and white droid.

‘That’s BB-8,’ said Scott. ‘He’s Poe Dameron’s droid, just like Artoo was Luke’s droid. BB-8 is just as loyal and smart as Artoo.’

‘How adorable!’ cooed Wanda.

‘BB-8 is the best,’ agreed Scott. ‘Now this is Kylo Ren.’

‘He… is he supposed to be like Vader?’ asked Steve, studying Kylo with a frown on his face. ‘He doesn’t look exactly like Vader, but he kind of does.’

‘Ah, yes. That’s complicated,’ answered Clint.

‘So who’s that one stormtrooper?’ asked Bucky.

‘Yeah, looks like they’re kinda important…but why the focus on a stormtrooper?’ asked Jane.

‘You’ll see,’ said Sam. ‘Sorry, everyone…. we don’t want to spoil any of this for you. Just watch because you’ll get your answers shortly.’

‘So this man knows who this Kylo Ren used to be?’ asked Bucky. ‘Is he kind of like me?’

Sam and Clint traded looks while Scott pursed his lips in thought.

‘Not exactly,’ said Scott, pausing between his words. ‘I don’t think he’s anything like you.’

‘Huh,’ said Bucky, watching as Poe verbally sparred with Kylo. ‘I like this Dameron kid. He’s got a mouth on him.’

‘And now we’ll see why the First Order is just as awful as the Empire was,’ said Sam.

‘They… they’re killing them!’ cried Wanda. ‘The villagers didn’t do anything.’

‘No. But the First Order doesn’t leave survivors, and Kylo Ren doesn’t want the Resistance knowing that he was there,’ said Clint, gently, reaching over to hug Wanda.

Wanda leaned into him. ‘That one stormtrooper… he isn’t doing anything. He isn’t firing his gun.’

‘Nope,’ said Sam, smiling at Wanda. 

‘So they took Poe with them, BB-8 escaped, and this is…. oh, he took his helmet off,’ breathed Wanda.

‘Does he have a name?’ asked Jane, staring wide-eyed at the young black man on the screen.

‘You’ll find out,’ said Sam.

‘Ugh! So frustrating!’ cried Wanda.

‘That’s Captain Phasma,’ said Clint. ‘She’s in charge of that group who went down to Jakku.’

‘Is he going to be punished?’ asked Thor. ‘Because he disobeyed orders to kill those villagers, right?’

‘Yes. He disobeyed direct orders and so he’ll be…. reconditioned,’ said Scott, flatly.

‘That’s horrible…. that’s like…. like what happened to Bucky,’ said Steve. ‘These stormtroopers don’t have a choice.’

‘They don’t. But it’s the only life they know. Many of them were taken from their families when they were very young,’ explained Scott.

‘Oh… there’s Poe. He looks a little beaten up,’ remarked Thor. ‘This must be part of their interrogation techniques.’

‘Probably. He’s been held prisoner and has had a moment to really see how powerful the First Order is. It’s the Empire and the Rebel Alliance all over again,’ said Sam.

‘Kylo is going to use Jedi mind powers on him instead, then,’ said Bucky. ‘Poe can’t fight that.’

‘And now they switched to… are they on Tatooine again?’ asked Wanda, puzzled.

‘It looks like it, doesn’t it? No, this is a planet called Jakku,’ answered Clint. 

‘And who is that?’ asked Steve, watching as a slender figure slid down carefully into the guts of an ancient ship.

‘You’ll see. Just watch,’ coaxed Sam with an encouraging smile.

‘Oh! That’s a girl!’ said Jane, delight in her voice. ‘She’s a scavenger of some type.’

‘She is. She finds these ships and gets parts and pieces to trade in,’ said Sam.

‘I like the music. Is that her musical theme?’ asked Steve.

‘It is. I like it, too. It’s one of my favourite songs,’ said Scott. 

‘She scrounges for food?’ asked Steve.

‘Yeah. That’s her life, there. She scrounges and she lives on Jakku. She’s been there a long time,’ answered Scott.

‘That looks lonely. She doesn’t have anyone with her. Except for that odd little Rebel pilot figure,’ added Wanda.

‘Is that…. Is that an AT-AT?’ asked Bucky, amused.

‘Yeah. The first time I saw the movie, I didn’t believe it,’ said Tony. ‘I wasn’t sure what she was living in, but the next time, I paid more attention...and sure enough, she’s living in an AT-AT.’

‘Well, it’s big enough for her. And it’s safe. She can protect herself on three sides,’ pointed out Bruce.

‘Strategy. It’s kept her alive this long, anyway,’ said Tony.

‘She’s used to taking care of herself. I wonder how long she’s been there, without any family,’ murmured Natasha.

‘Too long,’ said Wanda, her mouth downturned.

They watched as she confronted the creature who’d trapped BB-8. ‘Good thing she was nearby. BB-8 would have been in a lot of trouble, otherwise,’ remarked Jane.

‘Yes. And she understands Droid. Or binary speak, I think that’s what this is,’ said Tony. ‘Am I right, Clint?’

Clint looked pleased at being asked. ‘Yes, it’s binary. She learned it while she scavenged bits and pieces over the years. So she can communicate with BB-8 just fine.’

Thor watched as Rey was tempted to sell BB-8 for sixty portions of food. ‘That would be a difficult temptation. She is used to hunger.’

‘See? She almost gives in, but she knows BB-8 would be in danger if she gave that little ball of sass over,’ said Scott.

‘Does BB-8 go by he or she?’ asked Jane.

‘I think BB-8 is gender neutral and goes by they, them and theirs,’ answered Sam.

‘That’s really cool, actually,’ said Jane with a smile. ‘I think it’s nice to have representation that way.’

‘It really is. When the studio did promotional interviews, one of them had that information about BB-8 in it,’ said Sam.

Clint said, ‘That is so cool. You out geeked me there, Sam!’

‘And here we have our stormtrooper. Is he breaking Poe out?’ asked Steve.

‘Yup,’ said Bucky, trading delighted looks with Steve. ‘I bet he ducked right out of that room with Phasma and decided to make a run for it.’

‘Awww… look at Poe, so confused and so adorable,’ cooed Wanda. ‘He doesn’t know what to think of this guy, does he?’

‘Well, he’s supposed to be with the First Order, right? He shouldn’t be conning his way into Poe’s cell and freeing him, much less plotting to get them both out of there,’ laughed Sam.

‘I like this guy. Why doesn’t he have a name, though? It’s letters and numbers,’ commented Natasha.

‘That’s how they control them. They’re not individuals but designations,’ explained Scott. ‘Kind of like when I was in prison. Sure, I had a name, but it was my number that was on everything.’

Bucky watched with fascination as Poe and his rescuer made their way to a ship.

‘It would help if they would release the tie-down,’ said Bucky, sarcastically with an eyeroll and a giggle.

‘Sure. But they’ve got a lot going on there. They’ll get out,’ said Steve, confidence in his voice.

‘Whatever you say, Stevie. Mr ‘I can fly anything’ needs to get his shit together, or this rescue mission is going to end pretty damn quick,’ returned Bucky.

‘He’s new at this. They’ll be just fine,’ said Steve soothingly, taking Bucky’s hand.

‘That was a little more messy than it needed to be, but they’re on their way, at least,’ said Natasha. She smiled as the ship winged its way out of the hangar.

‘Oh! One of my favourite lines is coming up!’ exclaimed Scott, bouncing up and down in his seat.

‘Awww, Poe gave him a name. I like it a lot, too,’ smiled Wanda. ‘Finn sounds like a great name for him.’

‘Poe and Finn, sitting in a TIE fighter, K-I-S-S-I-N-G,’ chanted Scott.

‘That doesn’t…. that doesn’t even rhyme right,’ snorted Natasha.

‘Doesn’t have to. It’s the thought that counts,’ teased Scott.

‘Here’s a thought,’ said Bucky, staring at the screen and watching Kylo Ren intuitively know that it was Finn who deserted.

‘Uh oh. What’s on your mind, Red October?’ asked Tony.

‘So Kylo Ren is like, a Sith dude or something…. so he’s Force sensitive, right?’ asked Bucky, looking around for clarification.

‘He’s something like that, sure. He’s definitely Force sensitive,’ answered Sam while Clint nodded agreement.

‘How come he knows that it’s Finn? There are, what, thousands of stormtroopers on a ship? And there were at least a couple dozen on Jakku when they captured Poe,’ said Bucky, slowly and carefully speaking.

‘I think I know where you’re going here,’ said Bruce.

‘So is Finn a Jedi and he doesn’t know it or something?’ asked Bucky. ‘Because there should be no way Kylo Ren would know that just by looking at the description.’

‘That’s kind of complicated and we actually don’t know all the answers to that,’ answered Bruce. ‘I’m hoping that we’ll know more about that in the next movie that’s coming out this December.’

‘Good catch, though, Bucky,’ said Scott, giving Bucky a high five. ‘That pinged my radar, too…. and even more so as the movie goes on.’

Bucky smiled. Then his face changed to an expression of dismay as Finn narrowly escaped death.

‘Where is Poe?’ asked Steve.

‘Maybe dead,’ answered Tony.

Steve rolled his eyes at Tony but quickly turned back to the screen. ‘Poor Finn. He’s in that armour. And he’s in a desert. That’s got to horrible.’

‘I’ve been in that environment and let me reassure you, it fucking sucks,’ said Clint.

‘So have I,’ said Sam. ‘When I came back home, it took me forever to not feel as though I had sand in places that sand should not be.’

‘Hear you there, Sam!’ exclaimed Clint. He reached over and exchanged a high five with Sam.

‘Oh, poor Finn. He’s got to be dehydrated,’ said Wanda.

‘That is super gross though,’ said Natasha, wrinkling her nose at Finn desperately drinking water at the animal trough.

‘A guy’s gotta do what a guy’s gotta do,’ said Scott. 

‘It’s still really gross,’ agreed Wanda.

‘See, she can handle herself, although Finn doesn’t know that yet,’ Sam said with a chuckle. He cheered as the desert scavenger defended herself and BB-8.

‘And now she saw Finn. Uh, why is she coming after him?’ asked Bucky, puzzled.

‘Well, BB-8 just told her that was Poe’s jacket, remember? Finn could only get Poe’s jacket out of the wreckage,’ reminded Sam.

‘Oh, right. Finn’s in trouble,’ laughed Bucky, watching the panic etched on Finn’s face as he scrambled to get away.

Steve and Bucky both howled with laughter when BB-8 shocked Finn repeatedly. 

‘That little droid has some moxie!’ Bucky said, hiccuping..

‘She’s fierce, isn’t she?’ said Jane with a smile. ‘Just like Leia and Padme.’

‘Oh, sad little BB-8,’ cried Wanda as BB-8 reacted to the news that Poe was dead.

Bucky snickered again as Finn bluffed his connection with the Resistance.

‘That’s not going to bite him in the ass or anything,’ commented Steve. He watched as Finn listened intently and then grabbed Rey’s hand.

‘Finn knew what was up with that noise, didn’t he?’ asked Wanda.

‘Yeah. He knew it was an airstrike coming. Poor Finn. He’s caught up in something now,’ said Scott.

Everyone yelled with delight when the ‘garbage ship’ was revealed as the Millennium Falcon. 

‘I did _not_ see that coming!’ yelled Steve happily.

‘Best reveal ever!’ crowed Clint.

‘Hey, look, Finn is playing Luke Skywalker there. Hopefully he can take down some of those TIE fighters,’ said Wanda worriedly. She then whooped when Finn was able to take down a TIE fighter.

‘Whoa! Look at that piloting! That is amazing!’ said Steve.

‘And they got away. That’s great!’ Bucky smiled. 

‘Ohhhh…. her name is Rey,’ murmured Wanda. ‘I like it.’

‘So does Finn. I think he has a crush on her,’ laughed Jane. 

‘Possibly. Guess we’ll have to see,’ said Scott. 

‘Oh, great. There’s Kylo Ren,’ muttered Steve.

‘Uh…. what is the matter with this guy?’ asked Bucky as Kylo Ren trashed an instrument panel with his lightsaber.

‘That lightsaber is ugly. It doesn’t look very stable,’ remarked Thor.

‘It isn’t. But then, look at its owner. And it’s red, too. Very Sith-like for not being a Sith,’ noted Jane.

‘Sith wannabe. Do you think the officers draw straws when they have to talk to this man child?’ asked Natasha.

‘I bet they do. This poor asshole got the short end of the stick,’ answered Sam.

‘And now we’re back to Rey and Finn. Oh, did you catch that? Got a cute boyfriend? Smooth move there, Finn,’ cackled Clint.

‘It’s not like they teach this in the First Order, you know,’ pointed out Natasha.

‘You think BB-8 was threatening or encouraging Finn?’ asked Scott, idly.

‘Oh, when they gave Finn the thumbs up his little butane flame? Hard to tell,’ answered Tony. ‘I’d like to think they were neutral.’

‘Finn really hates Jakku,’ added Bucky, grinning. 

‘Don’t blame him. Sand. Everywhere,’ emphasized Sam.

‘Who captured them?’ asked Jane, sitting up as the Millennium Falcon was snagged by a tractor beam and brought up into a ship.

‘Guess we’ll find out,’ said Scott with a mischievous grin.

‘Is that….’ Bucky’s eyes grew wide and Steve gasped beside him in wonder.

‘I can’t believe it! Buck, it’s Han and Chewie!’ cried Steve.

Wanda clapped her hands and cheered and Natasha grinned.

‘This is awesome!’ proclaimed Thor while Jane laughed beside him.

‘I bet people yelled in the theater, too,’ said Bucky. ‘That was so great!’

‘Yeah! We were shocked and thrilled to see them. I mean, we saw them in the trailer but had no context. Seeing them turn up in the movie like this was perfect!’ answered Sam.

‘Totally,’ agreed Scott. ‘My inner geek boy was screaming.’

‘I bet your outer geek boy was making some noise, too,’ said Natasha, wryly, winking at Scott.

‘Might have been,’ said Scott, winking back.

‘So they’re on a big freighter ship or something…. and as usual, they’re going to get in trouble,’ commented Clint.

‘But look at Han’s face when he’s talking about Luke. Something happened. Whyis Han not with Leia? Why is he smuggling again?’ asked Bucky.

‘We don’t know all the answers to those questions . Some, but not all,’ answered Sam.

Bucky watched as Han talked about the Jedi and the Force. ‘He truly believes in it now. He didn’t before, remember? When he and Ben and Luke were on the ship…. it was nonsense to him.’

‘Yes. But he’s had cause to change his mind, hasn’t he?’ asked Sam.

Bucky bit his lip. ‘Yes. Experiencing things first hand usually is enough to support something or to see it fall apart because it wasn’t true.’

‘Believe me, when the Chitauri came from the sky, I didn’t believe what was happening at first. But when we started fighting them, I changed my mind pretty quick,’ said Steve.

‘That was an unreal experience. I’m glad we made it through,’ said Clint.

‘It was our first time working as a team. We really figured out how to work together, then,’ said Steve. ‘If we hadn’t, things would have been very different.’

‘And now?’ asked Tony, quietly. He looked at Steve and raised his eyebrows. ‘Can we be a team now?’

Sam sighed. ‘I’m going to stop the movie now because I can tell this is going to be one of those discussions again.’

‘Thanks, Sam,’ said Steve, exchanging wry smiles with Sam before Steve turned back to Tony. ‘I don’t know,’ he said, honestly. 

Tony nodded. ‘That’s fair enough. We’ve had some losses, and one of them was trust in each other. That’s hard to get back.’

‘Zemo did exactly what he set out to do…. break us up and tear us apart. The Accords were one thing, but what he accomplished went far beyond that,’ said Steve, his eyes downcast.

‘Do we even start over?’ asked Natasha. She straightened up as everyone’s attention focused on her. ‘The Accords are still in place. Who still supports them and who doesn’t?’

‘I haven’t changed my position on them,’ said Steve, softly. ‘And after Sam, Clint, Scott, and Wanda’s time on the Raft, it’s only solidified my stance.’

‘I understand that,’ said Tony. ‘I’m not sure I can still support it, either. You were right about the lack of checks and balances…. the inequity of power. I saw what was set up there, and I didn’t like it.’

‘But you were fine with us being there,’ said Scott, staring at Tony.

‘I was… occupied at the time. Getting you out of there would have taken time, but I didn’t intend to leave you there. Steve just got to you first,’ said Tony, not breaking Scott’s gaze.

Scott snorted. ‘That’s easy enough to say now, isn’t it? How do we know what your plans were? How do we know how soon you wanted to get us out? We don’t. We only have your word, and I’m not too keen on trusting that.’

‘Scott,’ began Steve, but Tony shook his head. 

‘No, he has every right to mistrust me, Steve. The facts don’t exactly stack in my favour.’

Sam leaned back and folded his arms. ‘Fact is that instead of trusting your longtime teammate and listening to him, you pushed forward an agenda that had red flags all over it.’

Tony sighed. ‘At the time, it felt like it was the right thing to do.’

Natasha snorted. ‘The right thing to do? Those Accords were meant to keep people like us in check by a government that wouldn’t hesitate to be judge, jury, and executioner. As it was for some people in this room.’

‘This is why you young people have so many growing pains,’ said Thor with a smile. ‘We had this as well. Many eons ago, we needed to make sure that the most dangerous amongst us were contained and that any threats were dealt with before they caused harm.’

Thor’s smile faded. ‘We made many mistakes. Asgard’s mistakes cost us allies and lives. We had to learn that acknowledging the most gifted amongst us didn’t mean we were weak. We had to learn how to encourage growth while also teaching wisdom. And we had to make sure that those who needed to be in prison were given their fair trial.’

‘There wasn’t a trial,’ said Clint, stirring restlessly next to Natasha. ‘We were taken to the Raft and put into prison. We watched as Wanda was put into that collar, and we saw the light leave her eyes. We didn’t know if we would ever be able to contact our loved ones.’

‘Learn something from me, Tony,’ said Bucky, gently. ‘When you create a monster, you are responsible for the consequences. If you wish to undo what you have created, it’s much harder to unmake without causing more trauma.’

‘I wasn’t there,’ said Bruce, clearing his throat. ‘So I can’t speak to anything but what I see now. And what I see now are people who want to reconnect and want to rebuild trust. A team might be the answer. It might not be. But maybe taking it slow, like Bucky suggested, is a good first step.’

‘A team isn’t the first step in any of this. There is trauma here. And hurt and fear. The Accords are still in place. We might be safer now, but that doesn’t guarantee any future activities,’ pointed out Sam.

‘So maybe the first step is to undo the Accords. Or amend them,’ said Tony, slowly. 

‘Maybe. Nothing says you can’t earn back trust and take care of that thorny problem as well,’ added Sam. ‘I know you can multi-task.’

Tony barked laughter. ‘I’m good at that.’

‘Not to mention that your best friend has trauma and a serious injury of his own,’ said Steve. 

‘I don’t know him at all,’ said Scott, leaning forward to catch Tony’s eye. ‘But I hope he’s doing better.’

Tony gave Scott a quick smile. ‘He’s doing much better. Rhodey is a fighter. He’s learning to walk again and he loves giving me hell about the brand new tech I’ve built for him.’

‘Build him his very own podracer. He’ll love you forever,’ said Clint.

‘He already loves me forever but this will be the icing on the cake,’ said Tony.

‘Please give him our best wishes,’ said Wanda. ‘If he’s ready to hear that from us.’

Tony nodded. ‘I think he is. I’ll let him know. Thank you for that. He hasn’t had time to get to know all of you like I do but he’ll appreciate it just the same.’

‘So we get to know one another. We make sure people are safe and have a plan in case someone gets any bright ideas again. And we work on dismantling or amending the Accords so it actually does what it should do… checks and balances,’ murmured Steve.

Tony gave a hesitant, fragile smile. ‘Is that…. is that agreeable to everyone?’

‘What if there’s another threat? Who goes out there to take care of things?’ asked Wanda.

‘I think we can discuss that at the time. It depends on what it is and who’s best equipped to take care of it,’ said Steve. ‘What do you think?’

‘Perhaps. Or maybe we can agree to be available and go out together,’ said Scott.

‘Who’s leading the time? You, Steve?’ asked Clint.

Steve shook his head. ‘No. I’m not filling that role anymore. And until the Accords gets fixed, I’m not Captain America, either. Tony took my shield. He can keep it.’

There was silence and they eyed each other, waiting to see who would react first..

‘You sure about that?’ asked Bucky, turning to Steve and taking his hand. He searched Steve’s face, looking for acknowledgement.

‘I’m sure about it. I’m going to go my own way. It’s probably best for me to do that for now,’ said Steve.

‘Steve…. are you sure? The shield was a gift from my father. It belongs to you,’ said Tony.

‘I appreciate that but I’m setting it aside until we fix things. I won’t be comfortable otherwise,’ said Steve.

Natasha bit her lip and exchanged troubled looks with Clint while Scott frowned and watched.

Thor held Jane’s hand and said, ‘I support your decision, Steven. If it’s the right thing for you to do, then I respect that.’

‘Me, too,’ said Jane. ‘I’m sad that you won’t be Captain America anymore.’

‘Who’s going to be Captain America, then?’ asked Sam.

Steve looked at him and grinned. .

‘Wait…. oh, no…. oh, **hell** no!’ exclaimed Sam.

‘You’d be a great Captain America,’ said Steve. ‘I’d be proud to have you take the shield and the uniform.’

‘I….’ Sam blinks his eyes and smiles shakily. ‘I wasn’t expecting this.’

‘No one expects the Spanish Inquisition,’ snickered Scott.

Clint cracked up and Sam threw a pillow at Scott who gracefully caught it and tossed it back.

‘I would actually be all right with Sam being Captain America,’ said Tony. ‘I think we should meet up and talk about your uniform and how you’d like to customize it. Do you want to be able to use your wings with it?’

Sam took a deep breath and said, ‘I’ll just go along with all of this and say sure, we can talk about it and yes, I’d like to use my wings with it.’

‘You look a little dazed there, Sam,’ commented Wanda.

‘I am. I grew up idolizing Gabe Jones. He was my hero. I thought the world of Cap, but I was so proud to see a black man serving at his side. To think I could have the same sort of influence, to really make a difference to my community and to people around the world…. that’s something else,’ said Sam.

‘And that’s why you’re perfect,’ put in Bucky. He’d been silent, watching the interactions closely. ‘You understand what Captain America symbolizes and you’d bring it one step further. You’d make a difference. That’s who should be in that uniform. Someone who is going to make a difference.’

‘Should we put it to a vote?’ asked Tony, looking around. ‘I learn from my mistakes. If Steve is done, then how about Sam?’

Silently, everyone raised their hands. Sam covered his face.

‘Sam…. it is up to you. I don’t want you to feel like this is something you have to do. I’d be honoured if you wanted to pick up where I left off,’ said Steve, leaning over to place a hand on Sam’s shoulder.

Sam put his hands down. Tears trickled down his face as he smiled at Steve. ‘The honour would be mine,’ he said softly, reaching up to squeeze Steve’s hand.

‘So. If Sam agrees, then he and I can meet and redesign the uniform. Huh. Looks like the wheel does go around, doesn’t it?’ asked Tony. ‘Dad and now me….’

‘Your dad would be crowing right now, Tony,’ said Bucky with a grin. ‘He would have never dreamed his son would be doing this in the future.’

Tony ducked his head and fidgeted. ‘Well, guess I’m full of surprises.’

‘Good ones,’ assured Scott. ‘This is all good.’

‘Let me see where we’re at, just because I think we might have lost the plot,’ said Natasha with a smile. ‘We’re going to work on amending the Accords. Sam is going to step into the role of Captain America. We are going to talk about teaming up if necessary, Am I correct so far?’

‘I’m pretty sure that’s where we’re at. Everyone OK with all of that to begin with?’ asked Steve.

Scott fidgeted in his seat and then said, ‘Look, this is all good and all but I’d like to watch the rest of the movie, you know. I want to know what all the people who haven’t seen it think of it and that’s not gonna happen if we keep yapping about this.’

‘We’ll wrap this up quickly, Scott. Anyone have any objections?’ asked Steve. He looked around and, seeing none, added, ‘OK, then. Shall we continue the movie?’

‘Just in case anyone else forgot, Han was talking about the Force and the Jedi being real, despite his earlier disbelief,’ summed up Scott.

‘Not too shabby, pal,’ praised Clint.

‘I have my talents,’ preened Scott.

Tony snorted and restarted the movie. ‘OK. Here’s where things start getting interesting.’

Clint laughs. ‘Interesting is one way to describe this mess.’

Bruce took a drink of his soda and added, ‘This has one of the funniest lines in the movie, to me.’

‘Which one is that?’ asked Scott.

‘’Tell Kanjiklub,’’ like _no one_ wants to hear that if they’re bluffing another party,’ answered Bruce, chuckling as Han discovered that Kanjiklub was also on board the ship.

‘He’s still that cocky smuggler, isn’t he?’ observed Natasha.

‘I don’t think Han has changed too much from who he was. He had to have missed being able to fly around the galaxy,’ mused Jane. ‘I would love to do that…. which isn’t surprising, seeing as it’s me.’

‘Uh… did she just let a Rathtar loose?’ asked Bucky. ‘Those things are ugly as sin, too.’

‘She let _two_ of them loose, if you didn’t notice,’ corrected Scott.

‘That’s not any better,’ muttered Bucky, watching as Rey saved Finn from a fate worse than death.

‘That poor ship. Remember in ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ when those cave thingies were on the glass?’ asked Natasha.

‘Oh. Mynocks. Yeah. Those things were disgusting,’ said Clint.

‘This Rathtar is just as disgusting. And it’s bigger. Ugh. I agree with Han. This wouldn’t be how I would want my day to end, either,’ said Natasha, wrinkling her nose.

‘Rey knows her way around a ship. You can tell Han is quietly impressed,’ noted Thor. ‘I’d be impressed as well. Han knows his ship inside and out. Rey hasn’t been on the ship very long but she knows how to fly it.’

‘True. Poor Chewbacca,’ Wanda said, laughing..

‘You mean poor Finn. This wasn’t exactly what he signed up for,’ noted Clint.

‘It’s probably much better than what would have happened if he’d stayed with the First Order,’ reminded Scott. 

Wanda shivered. ‘I’m glad he made the decision to leave. He didn’t fit in there, anyway. He’s too kind.’

‘Uh, what the fuck is that?’ asked Bucky, bluntly, staring at the projection of the otherworldly creature in front of Kylo Ren and a red-haired man.

‘That’s Supreme Leader Snoke, and the smirking shit next to Kylo is General Armitage Hux,’ answered Scott.

Bucky snickered. ‘They’re behaving like two year olds.’

‘So much hate sex,’ murmured Wanda dreamily, giggling when she caught sight of Sam, Bucky, and Clint’s horrified faces.

Scott nodded. ‘I can see that. They’d be that type of couple.’

Tony groaned and Bruce laughed, reaching over and slapping Tony on his back. ‘See? I wasn’t the only one who saw that.’

‘Wait a damn minute! Han is Kylo’s father???’ cried Bucky, throwing his head back in shock.

‘Yup,’ said Sam with a wicked glint in his eyes.

‘No! How can that be?’ asked Wanda. 

‘When two people love each other very much….’ started Scott.

Wanda rolled her eyes and waved her hands, and a delicate red mist pinched Scott’s side. Scott yelped, and Wanda smiled.

‘So does that mean Leia is his mother?’ asked Steve. He looked horrified. ‘How could this have happened? Something awful must have occurred.’

‘Guess we’ll find out. We don’t really know all the answers, either. I’m hoping some of this gets cleared up in the second movie,’ answered Sam.

They watched as Han explained what he knew of Luke’s disappearance.

‘Luke started a Jedi school? That’s really great!’ said Bucky.

‘Well, except for the part where his student went to the Dark Side and murdered the other padawans. Sound familiar, anyone?’ asked Steve.

Everyone winced and Bucky covered his eyes and groaned.

‘Damn it. Was kind of hoping this wouldn’t have repeated. Is this a Skywalker thing?’

‘You have no idea,’ muttered Jane, darkly.

They watched as Han and Rey piloted the ship to safety.

‘What a beautiful planet,’ breathed Jane. ‘It is so very green…. no wonder Rey is impressed.’

‘This is where Maz lives. She's Han’s friend. I think you will find a sense of deja vu with her place of refuge,’ said Scott.

They watched as the small group made their way into the main area of the stone structure. There, a bar and the area surrounding it had beings of all types in it.

‘Just like the cantina scene,’ laughed Wanda. ‘The makeup is a bit more advanced though.’

‘Sure. But yeah… it’s like that. And that’s Maz!’ announced Clint with a laugh.

‘Huh. Chewie is her boyfriend, huh?’ giggled Wanda. ‘She’s teasing, I think.’

‘Probably. She seems to know the family well enough and we don’t know how, either,’ said Clint.

‘Did anyone notice Han not swallowing Finn’s bullshit on the ship?’ asked Natasha.

‘Can’t bullshit a bullshitter, as they say,’ drawled Scott. ‘Han knew.’

‘Of course he did. And since he was Leia’s husband, he’d know something about women not being fooled, either,’ said Sam.

‘Hey, looks like we’ve got both sides at the castle. Wonder who’s going to get there first, the Resistance or the First Order,’ wondered Bucky.

‘My money is on the First Order. They’re tracking the Millennium Falcon anyway. They’ll have the jump on anyone else,’ said Steve.

‘Maz shouldn’t be so hard on Finn. He’s right, she has no idea who he is or what he’s been through. He has every right to be scared,’ said Wanda, frowning.

‘Being scared is one thing, rolling over without a fight is another,’ argued Steve.

Bucky sighed as Wanda shook her head.

‘Sometimes it’s better to not fight. It’s safer for you and for those around you. It can’t always be that easy,’ said Wanda. 

‘It never is,’ said Bucky, giving Steve a warning look. ‘Don’t get all sulky there, pal. Not everyone wants to just wade into something, fists flying.’

Steve slumped in his chair. ‘I’m sorry. I don’t mean to give that impression. It's just that when someone sees you unwilling to stand up for yourself, they’re going to take advantage of it. Bluffing is better.’

‘Bluffing works. But some people need to just get away because it’s how they cope. And there’s no shame in that,’ said Bucky. 

‘Finn has a lot of conditioning to overcome. He wants Rey to stay with him, but he isn’t going to force her. Give him some credit, Steve,’ said Scott.

‘I don’t mean to sound like… like a bully,’ said Steve, quietly. ‘I am learning to step back and acknowledge that not everyone is like me…. and that people fight their own battles in different ways.’

‘You’re getting better at it,’ said Sam.

‘Thanks. Uh…. what’s going on with Rey?’ asked Steve, sitting up. ‘Not to change the subject but…’

‘Oh. This,’ breathed Scott.

Bucky took Steve’s hand as they watched Rey’s vision. 

‘Whoa… that’s a lot to take in,’ said Bucky, shaking his head.

‘Was that Obi-Wan we heard?’ asked Wanda, leaning forward to look at Sam.

‘Was that Qui-Gon?’ asked Steve. ‘Because I thought I heard his voice at the very end.’

‘And holy shit. That was what happened at the Jedi training school, wasn’t it? That was what Han was talking about,’ said Bucky.

‘That’s…. awful,’ said Wanda, leaning into Clint’s embrace as he hugged her to him.

‘Yeah. And I think we skipped right over talking about Kylo Ren and what he had with him,’ said Sam.

‘Was that Darth Vader’s helmet?’ asked Bucky. ‘How did he get that?’

‘We don’t know,’ said Scott. ‘But one wonders, doesn’t one?’

‘He’s conflicted. Just like Anakin was. At least he’s got that part of the Skywalker mess right,’ observed Thor, shaking his head.

‘If he really wanted to be like his grandfather, he would abandon Snoke and go join the Resistance to make up for what he did,’ said Jane. ‘But no. He’s going to repeat old mistakes and be just as dysfunctional. I hope Anakin can see what he’s doing, and that he's having a fit.’

‘He probably can. He’s one with the Force, remember? Maybe he’s yelling at Kylo,’ said Natasha.

‘Doesn’t look like Kylo hears him yelling,’ muttered Bucky.

‘Rey was so little when her parents left her on Jakku. Her hair is exactly the same style,’ said Natasha. ‘She wants to look the same, doesn’t she? Just in case.’

‘But Maz knows that they aren’t coming back. Rey has to let the past go,’ said Steve. He sighed and shuddered. ‘That’s easier said than done.’

‘See? That’s how you should look at Finn. He has a past, too,’ said Sam gently.

‘You’re right. He shouldn’t have to run, though. Doesn’t he know that he has friends to help him?’ asked Steve, bewildered.

‘Stevie…. I had no friends when I was the Asset. Finn was just letters and numbers, remember? This whole friends concept…. I had to remember again, and Finn is still learning,’ said Bucky.

‘Yeah…. he is. I hope he realizes he’s with good people now. Maybe he won’t want to run,’ said Steve.

‘Maybe he won’t,’ smiled Bucky.

Clint made gagging noises while Wanda nudged him in his side. ‘Oh, stop. You like this stuff. I’ve seen what you read on the sly,’ she teased.

‘Lies! All lies and fabrications!’ declared Clint while Natasha rolled her eyes and mouthed, ‘Not a lie’ to everyone else’s amusement.

‘And the First Order beats the Resistance!’ mock-cheered Scott. They watched while chaos erupted around Maz’s castle.

‘Poor Finn. He gets called a traitor for leaving the First Order by everyone,’ said Scott.

‘Well, can’t have stormtroopers having ideas about deserting, can we? There has to be more than one person who is uneasy about being in the First Order,’ said Tony.

‘Seeing as they were kidnapped and then forced to train as child soldiers, I’d say yes,’ said Bruce, trading glances with Tony.

‘I didn’t even think of that,’ said Steve, his face blanching. ‘Child soldiers…. damn it. I’m still learning.’

‘We are all still learning,’ said Natasha, kindly. ‘You’re not the only one, Steve.’

‘I really don’t like the looks of this,’ said Bucky, frowning at the red banners and soldiers in front of General Hux.

‘Are they trying to elicit the whole Nazi Germany scene?’ asked Steve, also frowning.

‘Oh, guys…. sorry…. should we uh, skip this?’ asked Sam, hastily.

‘Nooo…. I can see why they wanted to do it like this but that’s really a harsh reminder of things we fought against,’ answered Steve.

‘I think they did want to evoke that imagery, just to show how the First Order was all about oppression and tyranny,’ said Clint. ‘It’s thematic in quite a few movies.’

‘So this Starkiller is vastly more powerful than the Death Stars were,’ said Thor.

‘Yes. See those beams? They’re going to destroy five planets, whereas the Death Stars could only destroy one a piece,’ answered Sam.

‘I like how you say ‘only’ one at a time,’ said Bruce, ‘As if it isn’t as bad.’

‘Well, you know…. seriously, though, they just destroyed the Resistance’s main support, especially when it comes to military and personnel,’ said Clint.

‘Don’t forget that’s where the archives were…. and of course, civilians,’ added Sam.

‘Five planets worth of people, wiped out in an instant,’ said Bucky, softly. ‘Do you think anyone with the Force felt it? Do you think Luke felt it, wherever he is?’

‘He probably did. That huge a disturbance in the Force? It probably went across galaxies,’ said Sam.

‘Maybe it’ll help bring him back. Maybe it’ll show him he can’t hide anymore,’ said Bucky.

‘Maybe. I’m sure Leia felt it, too. She’s Force sensitive, at the very least, even though she isn’t trained like Luke is,’ said Bruce.

‘Finn knew what happened. He knew what those red beams meant,’ noted Wanda.

They watched the movie for a little while, engrossed in the action on the screen.

‘And here comes the cavalry! Is that… that’s Poe!’ exclaimed Thor with a whoop.

‘Poe’s alive!’ laughed Wanda, clapping her hands together, her eyes sparkling.

‘I think Finn is crushing on Poe,’ snickered Scott.

‘He doesn’t know who that pilot is, but he sure likes his skills,’ said Steve.

‘True. Still. Wait until Finn finds out,’ said Scott, his grin widening.

‘And Rey is running into the forest with BB-8 following her. Poor BB-8. This has to be traumatic,’ said Jane sympathetically.

‘She has to be careful. Kylo Ren is going to come after her and I don’t think she’s a match for him,’ said Wanda worriedly.

‘He’s a little too obsessed with her,’ said Natasha. ‘Like, pretty much creeper upset.’

‘He’s upset because Snoke has focused on her. It’s like a toddler wanting to have the most attention,’ said Bruce.

‘Yeah, that makes sense. Still. It’s creepy,’ said Natasha, frowning at the screen while Kylo stalked Rey through the stone passageway.

‘Not gonna disagree with you,’ said Bruce. ‘Rey is better off without his attention on her.’

‘Oh, shit. Well, that didn’t end well,’ muttered Bucky as Kylo Ren captured Rey.

‘Oh, geez. Look at Finn…. he knows what’s going to happen to her and he’s…. he’s not leaving now, is he?’ asked Sam.

‘Nope. I don’t think leaving is even on his mind,’ answered Steve.

‘And Han saw Kylo Ren… who is his freaking son if you remember,’ reminded Natasha.

‘How could we forget that part?’ asked Bucky. ‘Look at Han’s face.’

‘This is going tits up pretty fast,’ said Scott. ‘Finn’s upset, Han’s not too happy either, and Rey’s been kidnapped by Kylo Ren.’

‘At least BB-8 is OK,’ joked Clint. 

‘True. Small comfort though,’ said Natasha.

They watched as Han brushed aside Finn and waited as a quad ship landed in a clearing.

‘Looks like the Resistance is checking things out, personally,’ commented Thor.

‘Yes, and ohhhh….’ breathed Wanda. ‘There she is!’

Bucky and Steve both drew in their breath as they saw Leia Organa step out of the ship and then they both laughed when C-3PO inserted himself in front of Han.

‘Oh, Threepio, never change!’ snickered Steve.

‘I think they still love each other,’ murmured Natasha. ‘See how they look at each other.’

‘Of course they do. Whatever drove them apart didn’t stop their love for each other. They felt so strongly about each other in ‘Empire’ and ‘Return of the Jedi,’’ said Sam.

‘I understand that. It’s how I feel about Bucky,’ said Steve with a small smile.

‘You are a punk,’ said Bucky, shaking his head with a similar smile on his face.

‘I might be, but I’m your punk. To the end of the line and all that,’ said Steve. 

‘OK, you two lovebirds…. you might want to watch this part,’ suggested Clint.

They watched as Finn and Poe reunited.

‘Yup. Now unlike Kylo Ren and Hux, these two have the sweetest sex ever. Like, all cuddling and romance and everything,’ said Wanda decisively.

‘You think so? I think they’d have hot sex, too. Like, you know, blow jobs and fingering and all,’ put in Scott.

‘Must we talk about this?’ asked Tony with a pained expression on his face.

Thor raised his eyebrows. ‘Are you squeamish about sex?’

Tony guffawed. ‘Me? Nah. Just… I mean, these guys aren’t even real, they’re characters in a movie and we’re talking about intimacy and sex like they are.’

Thor shrugged. ‘So? Look at Midgard’s mythology, some of which was about us, admittedly. Still. There was plenty of sexual encounters there.’

‘But we knew it was mythology,’ said Tony but Bruce shook his head.

‘Not necessarily. Remember, it’s mythology to us but to them? It isn’t. And people do this sort of thing all the time. You can’t tell me you haven’t thought of some fictional character and wondered about them and who they’d partner up with and if they went on dates or had sex or whatever,’ argued Bruce.

‘Fair point,’ admitted Tony. ‘I just wish people would write better stories about me.’

There was a heavy silence in which Sam, Scott, and Clint looked everywhere but at each other, Natasha hid a smile behind her hand, and Bucky and Steve looked just as confounded as Tony and then just as horrified.

‘Wait… you mean people make up stories about Tony?’ asked Steve, his voice rising.

‘Yeah,’ said Clint, laughter in his voice.

‘You know what? I’m watching this movie. I don’t want to even talk about this’ said Tony, turning to the screen and staring at it.

Bucky watched the movie and then said, ‘People really do that? Write about us?’

‘It’s not like we haven’t had that happen before, Buck. People imagined themselves in relationships way back then, too. Remember the fan mail?’ asked Steve.

‘Oh, geez,’ said Bucky, paling. ‘How could I forget those letters? Remember the underwear?’ 

‘Let’s not get into that,’ said Steve, hastily, seeing the gleam in Tony’s eyes. ‘Anyway, look, Finn is going to go help rescue Rey with Han and Chewbacca.’

‘Way to change the subject, pal,’ snickered Bucky but he added, ‘Leia hasn’t lost any of her spirit, has she?’

Jane smiled happily. ‘Padme would be so proud of her daughter.’

‘At least they have a plan now. They gotta rescue Rey and they’ve got to destroy that Starkiller weapon. Neither of those are going to be easy,’ said Clint.

‘Nothing good in life is easy,’ retorted Natasha.

‘Well, this isn’t. The map piece doesn’t show exactly where Luke is at, and Leia wants Han to rescue their son and bring him back. I don’t know if that’s going to be possible,’ said Clint, shaking his head.

‘All they can do is try and hope. Hope is sometimes all a person has to go on to do what needs to be done,’ said Wanda. ‘You know that.’

‘I do. I’ve operated on hope for years, too, Wanda,’ said Clint, softly.

‘Looks like Rey’s in the same situation that Poe was in,’ said Bucky, frowning.

‘Yeah, none of this is good,’ agreed Steve. ‘There’s Kylo Ren.’

‘He took his mask off…. ohhhh…. he looks like Han and Leia. I can see them both in his face,’ said Jane. ‘This is Padme’s grandson? This sad young man? I wonder what Padme would make of him.’

‘Rey’s fighting him! She can protect herself from him,’ said Steve. ‘It’s the Force, isn’t it?’

‘Yup,’ said Sam. ‘Kylo got a little out of her - although that’s interesting, isn’t it? An island in an ocean? That didn’t show on the little piece of map that Artoo projected, it was just… planets and such.’

‘Do you think she just knows where Luke is without knowing the exact location?’ asked Bucky, wide eyed.

‘Maybe. At least she gets the impression…. and oh, good job, Rey! She tapped right into his fear that he isn’t as good as his grandfather,’ cheered Steve.

‘She got him to leave in a huff. She’s got to get out of there, though. Now that he knows that she is strong in the Force, that puts her in danger,’ pointed out Thor.

‘It does. And Snoke wants to see her now. That’s uh…. that’s really bad,’ said Clint.

‘Understatement of the year,’ laughed Scott. ‘Kylo Ren went right to communicate with Snoke and Snoke is like, ‘I want to see this for myself.’ No way do we want Rey in the same room with that monster.’

‘Agreed,’ said Bucky. ‘Oh, hey…. there we go, Rey. Do an Obi-Wan on the guy.’

‘Except there aren’t any droids there,’ teased Steve.

Bucky didn’t even bother looking in Steve’s direction as he turned to Bruce and said, ‘My bet is on Rey getting out.’

Bruce grinned as Rey successfully manipulated the guard into not only letting her free but giving her his weapon. ‘You’d win!’

‘And there goes Kylo, having another fit and ruining even more consoles,’ said Jane disapprovingly. 

‘Look at those two stormtroopers. I’d react the same way. Hell no and let’s just turn around and pretend we didn’t see a damn thing!’ laughed Scott.

Everyone else laughed as well, then watched as Han skilfully piloted the Millennium Falcon through its rough landing.

‘Wow. That would be the scariest sled ride ever,’ said Scott, Sam nodding in fervent agreement.

‘At least they made it in one piece,’ said Bruce.

‘Relatively,’ joked Jane and she and Bruce shared grins while everyone else groaned.

‘Hah! ‘That’s not how the Force works!’’ These are the best quotes,’ laughed Bucky. His eyes widened as he remembered his words from earlier. ‘So that’s what you were going on about!’

‘Yes we were,’ said Scott. He grinned at Bucky while Sam groaned.

‘Look, a touching reunion!’ smirked Scott as Captain Phasma was ambushed by the trio.

‘Finn better calm down a little. He’s losing the plot,’ Natasha said. 

They all watched as Han smiled an unholy grin of delight.

‘’Trash compactor’’.... that is too much!’ cried Thor, laughing along with the rest.

‘Well, at least she’s out of the way. Now they’ve got to find Rey,’ said Wanda, recovering from the giggles first.

‘Rey has been sneaking around and probably using her new Force powers like Obi-Wan did on the first Death Star,’ said Sam.

‘Let’s hope it doesn’t end the same way,’ said Natasha, watching as Rey climbed up the sheer wall.

‘Han is having too much fun with Finn,’ said Scott. ‘And poor Finn. He’s ready to put a plan into action but Rey is taking good care of herself, thank you very much.’

‘That’s what I really love about this movie,’ said Jane. ‘Rey is such a strong person. She can take care of herself and does so. She doesn’t need to be rescued. She is smart and resourceful.’

‘I like that, too,’ said Natasha. ‘It’s nice to see a stormtrooper be much more than a faceless machine.’

‘If you look at the main cast, it’s really great representation. A black man, a Latino man, and a woman. Let’s just say some people were having a problem with all of that,’ said Clint, rolling his eyes.

‘Of course they would. Not like most of these movies don't already have white men as leads, anyway?’ pointed out Jane.

‘And minorities were always villains. Note that Kylo Ren is white, as is General Hux,’ added Wanda.

‘It’s always refreshing to see the roles reversed, not going to lie,’ said Sam. ‘My family was thrilled when this movie came out. They could see themselves in Finn. I think we all saw it three times in the theater.’

‘I think it’s great. The Howling Commandos were diverse and a lot of people didn’t like it,’ said Steve, nudging Bucky with his arm.

‘Yeah. They had a problem with a black man, a Frenchman, a Japanese man, and a British man serving with me and Stevie. We told them to stuff it,’ said Bucky with great satisfaction in his voice.

‘Good thing they didn’t know about us queer men or they’d really have had a fit,’ sniggered Bucky.

‘Wait… you and Steve…. back in the day?’ stumbled Tony. 

Sam just sighed and paused the movie.

‘Well, yeah. I mean, Steve and I lived in a neighborhood where there were drag queens and gay guys and lesbians. The Stonewall Inn wasn’t the first gay bar in the City, you know,’ chided Bucky.

‘But… what about Peggy?’ asked Tony, bewildered.

‘Bisexuality,’ quipped Steve.

‘Dad didn’t mention anything about this,’ grumbled Tony while Natasha laughed and Clint and Scott exchanged high fives.

‘Why would he? Tony, we weren’t close. Peggy was closer to Howard than I was. I saw him from time to time, but I was out on missions with the Howlies. I didn’t have time to hang out with him,’ explained Steve.

‘Also, Bucky and I kept our heads down low. There might have been gay and lesbian people serving, but we didn’t want to draw attention to ourselves. Plenty of soldiers had their hook-ups regardless of their sexuality. We were discreet,’ said Steve.

‘OK. I can see that,’ admitted Tony. ‘Huh. What did the Howling Commandos think?’

‘They didn’t care. We were a racially integrated group as well as an international one. We had bigger fish to fry overall. And like I said, Tony…. discreet,’ reminded Steve.

‘Did you mind? I mean, that Steve and Peggy had a thing?’ asked Tony.

Sam groaned. ‘Tony…. that’s not your business.’

‘I’m just saying… if everyone else was doing don’t ask, don’t tell with Cap and Red Rover over here, then it had to be hella awkward when Peggy was in the picture,’ said Tony stubbornly, crossing his arms over his chest.

Bucky shrugged. ‘Look, it was different because Steve was well, different. And Peggy back then was a force to be reckoned with. She still is, on her good days. It was something we somehow all worked out without saying much about it. Out in the field, Steve and I spent time together when it was feasible. When Peggy was around, she and Steve had their turn.’

‘How about all three of you? Couldn’t you have worked that out?’ asked Scott. ‘Sorry. Just that I’m not stupid enough to think that open relationships didn’t exist in the olden days, either, you know.’

Steve grinned. ‘Never took you for stupid, Scott. Maybe it was an open relationship in a way. Peggy knew about Bucky. Bucky knew about her. But we just didn’t talk about it. Like Bucky said, it worked out. Not that I got to spend a lot of time with Peggy or Bucky, so when it happened, I treasured it.’

‘That’s what matters, anyway,’ said Jane, firmly. ‘I don’t always get to spend time with Thor but I do treasure the time we have. I don’t question his time on Asgard and he doesn’t question my time here.’

‘I have no one else on Asgard or anywhere in the nine realms,’ said Thor, solemnly.

‘I know you don’t. And I don’t want to be with anyone else either,’ smiled Jane. 

‘Fair enough. Just… huh. OK, so your unit was really revolutionary and not just because you were this supersoldier. That’s something that should be in the history books. Not the boring stuff about you two,’ said Tony.

‘I’m plenty OK with being boring,’ reassured Bucky. ‘I’ve had enough excitement to last me quite some time.’

Sam gently cleared his throat. ‘Shall we finish the movie?’

‘Oh, geez, Sam! I’m sorry. Yes, please,’ said Steve apologetically.

Everyone watched as Han confronted his son.

‘His name is Ben?’ asked Wanda.

‘Yes,’ said Sam.

‘I wonder what Obi-Wan thought of that,’ mused Bucky. 

‘Probably was proud, and now? Horrified and heartbroken,’ guessed Scott.

‘Did you see how Rey hugged Finn? And how Finn said they’d come back for her? That was so adorable,’ cooed Wanda.

‘It really was. Don’t think Finn is going anywhere, now,’ said Clint with a grin.

‘Doubt it…. oh…. oh, Han… be careful,’ murmured Natasha.

‘Kylo looks pretty conflicted there,’ observed Wanda.

‘Sure. He’s fighting the pull of the Dark Side and Snoke’s teaching along with his feelings for his father,’ said Clint.

‘Maybe Han can bring him back. He can help the Resistance…. he can see his mother,’ murmured Wanda.

Sam bit his lip as Han stared at Kylo Ren and grasped the lightsaber.

‘NO!’ screamed Wanda as Kylo thrust the lightsaber through Han’s body.

Bucky and Steve both yelled their dismay and Jane and Thor gasped, their hands up to their mouths. Natasha’s eyes widened and she shook her head in denial.

Wanda turned to Clint, tears in her eyes. ‘He killed his father! And Han…. he just touched his face…. why would he do that to his father?’

‘He had to prove himself to Snoke. Han’s right, of course. Kylo is just being used, but he doesn’t see it. He’ll learn in the end but it’ll be a hard reckoning,’ said Clint, softly. He hugged Wanda to him as she cried.

‘I hated this part,’ muttered Bruce, crossing his arms over his chest. ‘Most of the movie theater was in shock and there were a lot of tears.’

‘I didn’t like it much either,’ said Scott. He leaned over and gently stroked Wanda’s hair. ‘Are you OK?’

Wanda sniffled. ‘No…. that’s just…. I know it’s a movie but not Han…. that’s so hard!’

‘I grew up with Han Solo. This was one of the worst movie experiences ever,’ said Sam. ‘My whole family was in tears.’

‘Oh, Leia…. she felt him die…. this is so sad!’ cried Wanda.

‘I don’t like it either,’ said Bucky, his mouth downturned. ‘Kylo Ren has crossed a line. He murdered his father in cold blood.’

‘Did anyone else see that coming? Because I was so wrapped up in their reunion that I was caught off guard,’ said Steve.

‘I had a feeling,’ said Thor. ‘Just because the young man looked like he was trying to work his way to doing some action. He was talking himself into doing something he knew he shouldn’t do.’

‘I knew,’ said Clint, flatly while Natasha nodded agreement. ‘Just how he talked. He was too far gone to be saved.’

‘Poor Rey. She was crying so much. She really bonded with Han in the short time she’d spent with him,’ said Jane. ‘Han showed her such kindness and offered a job… he gave her stability and security.’

‘Yes. What really hit home for me was that Han didn’t scream at him or curse at him… he just looked at him and touched his face one last time. That was hard to see,’ admitted Bruce. 

‘And now they’re in the woods. Remember the vision that Rey had?’ asked Sam. 

‘Yes. There’s Kylo Ren. It’s just like what Rey saw,’ said Steve. ‘We don’t know how this ends, though, do we?’

‘Nope,’ said Bucky, leaning forwards to watch. ‘This is going to get pretty intense.’

They watched as Kylo dispatched Rey from the fight and turned to face Finn.

‘There he goes with that traitor business. Way to piss off Finn,’ remarked Tony. 

‘Finn’s going to try his best. Not too bad, actually,’ said Bucky, pursing his lips.

‘He’s no Jedi and his form is terrible, but I think he’s definitely got potential,’ agreed Sam.

‘He’s going to potentially get himself killed if he…. oh, hell!’ swore Natasha, grimacing as Finn went down.

‘Anyone want to take a bathroom break?’ asked Scott, his tone light.

‘Are you messing with me?’ demanded Bucky while Sam sighed and rolled his eyes.

‘I might be,’ returned Scott, giving Bucky a rude hand gesture which Bucky returned as well, putting more emphasis into his gesture.

‘Kylo would love to have Luke’s lightsaber, huh? He doesn’t deserve it,’ said Steve.

Bucky put his arm around Steve as Luke’s lightsaber shot past Kylo’s astonished face and ended up in Rey’s firm grip.

‘Yes!’ hooted Bucky. Thor yelled his approval as well.

‘Now we’ll see how this really goes down,’ said Steve with satisfaction in his voice.

‘Rey’s going to kick Kylo’s ass. She might be new with the Force, but I bet she masters it better,’ predicted Wanda.

Natasha made a noise of agreement. ‘She also is fighting for her life and for Finn’s as well. There’s a lot at stake and she’s not going to back down. She’s lived her own life that way.’

‘Jesus…. Kylo’s losing blood. Chewbacca’s bolt got him and got him good,’ said Scott.

‘Oh, yeah. Interesting that Chewbacca didn’t go for a headshot,’ pointed out Clint. ‘I would have.’

‘Would you have? If you knew someone since they were born, helped raise them, played with them? Maybe you comforted them when they were hurting and maybe you taught them some things…. would it be that easy?’ asked Thor, curiousity in his voice.

Clint looked down at the floor. ‘If I had to, I would,’ he said, looking up and meeting Thor’s eyes.

‘Maybe you’re the one who can make that hard decision without any qualms. I would have to choose a different path,’ said Thor. 

‘I wouldn’t say I didn’t feel any qualms. But if the path is clear, then I’ll go down it without hesitation once I decide my course,’ said Clint.

‘See Rey? She just tapped into the Force, like Maz instructed her. For not being a Jedi, Maz knew a thing or two,’ said Sam.

‘There we go. That’s my brave girl,’ murmured Jane. ‘She’s going to do just fine now.’

They watched as Kylo and Rey were separated by the planet splitting apart, Rey crying next to Finn.

‘This must be so overwhelming for her. She leaves her home planet, befriends a former stormtrooper, flies with two heroes from the Rebellion, is interrogated by someone from the Dark side of the Force, and ends up in a battle to save her and her friend’s life,’ summed up Scott.

‘Not to mention seeing the man she was beginning to consider her mentor murdered in front of her eyes by his son. That would have been traumatic as well,’ added Steve.

‘And Chewbacca comes to pick them up. Poor Chewie. He had a life debt to Han for something Han did for him way back… and he, too, saw Han murdered before his eyes. Chewie knew Han the longest of any of them,’ reminded Sam.

‘I’m going to start crying again,’ said Wanda, her eyes filling with tears. ‘Poor Chewbacca. And Leia! She must be devastated.’

‘It’s OK. It was hard for a lot those of us who’ve grown up with these characters…. known Han since we were little or teens… and got to grow up along with the movies. A lot of people cried,’ said Clint, hugging Wanda against him.

‘See? Leia is so strong…. look at all she’s lost. Her first parents. Her second parents. Her planet and her people. Then she lost her son and her husband and her brother… and now, she’s lost Han for good. How can she do it?’ asked Scott.

‘How we all do it. We pick ourselves up and go on. We acknowledge our losses and grieve when we can, and heal if we can. It’s not perfect and it’s not messy but that’s what humans do,’ said Sam, softly.

‘Humans are messy,’ teased Thor with a grin. ‘But so are Asgardians. Most beings in the nine realms are messy. You’re not alone in this.’

‘I guess that’s kind of comforting,’ said Scott, sighing. He picked up his pop can and took a sip. ‘At least Finn is OK and Rey is OK…. still. I hated that scene.’

‘Artoo woke up!’ exclaimed Wanda, wiping her eyes. She bounced up and down in her seat with excitement.

‘He sure did. Let’s see what happens. Oh, hey, that damn droid had the other pieces of the map all this time,’ marveled Bucky. ‘That was smart of Luke, to leave Artoo with the Resistance.’

‘Artoo is going to light Luke up with his little electric prod, just you wait and see,’ said Scott. 

‘Could you imagine? Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight, running for his life from a little angry beeping droid,’ snickered Steve.

‘Oh my god. Artoo would be cussing Luke out something fierce. Probably a lot of F bombs being dropped,’ guessed Bucky.

‘Do you think he would?’ asked Bruce, grinning.

‘He’s so full of sass. He isn’t going to be like, ‘now, Luke, you shouldn’t have disappeared like that.’ He’ll be like, ‘you fucking jackass, how dare you leave me here, you shit cake, get over here and take it like a real Jedi!’’ gasped out Bucky between peals of wheezing laughter.

‘And BB-8 will fall in love,’ predicted Tony with a snicker of his own.

‘That’s exactly what we need. Two droids who are capable of shocking people running around in full sass mode,’ said Scott, dryly.

‘Well, Artoo is going with Rey and Chewbacca to see Luke, so maybe there’ll be running around when they get there,’ put in Clint.

‘Oh, hey…. an island surrounded by water,’ said Steve, slowly. ‘Remember what Rey saw in her mind?’

‘Right. Looks like someone is a lot more powerful than people think,’ said Bruce.

‘I love the music right now,’ sighed Wanda.

‘I like it a lot, too,’ said Natasha, humming along.

‘Rey has to climb all those steps?’ asked Steve. ‘No thank you.’

‘At least the view is pretty,’ pointed out Sam.

‘True. Still. And there’s… is that Luke?’ asked Bucky, squinting at the screen.

‘Oh wow…. that is Luke. He’s changed, hasn’t he?’ asked Wanda. ‘He looks so sad.’

‘Rey isn’t going to make it easy for him,’ said Jane with a satisfied look on her face. ‘Luke has a lot to answer for and maybe Rey can get those answers.’

‘Maybe,’ said Natasha. ‘She also needs to train to become a Jedi. Luke’s got to train her. Kylo Ren would be a bad choice.’

‘To say the least,’ shuddered Sam.

‘And the movie’s done. That’s a bit of a stand off between Rey and Luke, isn’t it?’ asked Steve.

‘Sure is. Now we have to wait until December to see the next movie,’ said Scott, sighing.

‘What???’ exclaimed Bucky. ‘December? I don’t know if I can wait that long.’

‘Now you’re all caught up with the rest of us though. We’ll have to all go see it in December together,’ suggested Sam.

‘What do you all think? Should we?’ asked Scott, looking around the room. 

‘Let’s. This was awesome. We’re all set for the next movie now!’ said Steve, happily.

‘We are. Let’s make plans closer to the time. We’ll have to see where everyone is at and what’s going on. But we definitely should get together and do this, right?’ asked Tony.

‘Right,’ said Steve and everyone else nodded.

‘Hey…. is there a trailer or something for the next movie?’ asked Bucky.

Sam just grinned. ‘Funny you should mention that…’


	10. Epilogue or In Which Podracing Happens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Podracing makes everything better.
> 
> So does watching the trailer for 'The Last Jedi' and making plans to see the movie together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much again to my amazing betas, Librariandrew and gamerfic.... to my super awesome artist, whatthefoucault... and to my fellow writers on the Slack channels.... 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed the journey as much as I enjoyed writing it. I loved sharing my combined love for The Avengers and Star Wars; it was a writer's dream come true.
> 
> May the Force Be With You. Always.

‘Has anyone else seen the trailer for the eighth movie?’ asked Sam.

Tony raised his hand, as did Clint and Scott. Sam rolled his eyes and smirked at the mischievous trio.

‘I should have known you three would have. Anyone else?’ asked Sam.

‘Are you sure you want to watch it now, Buck?’ asked Steve. ‘You look pretty tired. We did just watch two movies.’

‘Nah, I wanna end this. I can’t wait until December. We’re all going, right?’ asked Bucky, looking at everyone else for confirmation.

‘Absolutely. I wouldn’t miss it,’ assured Sam.

‘Me neither. I’ll even bring my daughter so you can meet her,’ said Scott, which elicited approval from everyone else.

‘I could bring up Laura and the kids for a weekend. We could do the big city and join you at the movies, if that’s all right,’ said Clint.

‘That would be great!’ enthused Steve with a smile.

‘Do you want to invite Darcy?’ asked Natasha, looking over at Jane. 

‘She would probably like to join us. I think she has a guy she’s been dating as well,’ said Jane. ‘We can check him out.’

‘Oooo! Checking a guy out. That sounds like it could be fun,’ purred Natasha, a smile turning the corners of her mouth up.

‘We could invite Maria, Vision, and Rhodey. Maybe that kid, too,’ said Tony, hesitantly.

‘If Rhodey is comfortable being around us,’ said Sam, quietly.

‘Hey. Hey, look. It was an accident and you tried, Sam. And I never said thank you for that. I never…. you tried to reach him and all I did was hit you… I’m sorry. Thank you for trying. I do appreciate it,’ said Tony, looking Sam right in the eye.

‘You’re welcome,’ said Sam, smiling a little.

 

‘I am going to say something here, Sam. Please forgive me ahead of time. But…’ Steve squared his shoulders and faced Tony. ‘Tony, his wingman died in the air. Sam was there and he tried to save him but he couldn’t. Just know that despite remembering that, Sam did his best for Rhodey.’

Sam covered his face and groaned. ‘Steve… noooo….’

Tony’s voice was sharp. ‘No! I needed to know that. I….’ He rubbed his own face with his hands and sighed. ‘Rhodey says I get too self-absorbed. That I don’t stop and look around every now and then. It’s hurt me before and while I’d like to think I learned my lesson, apparently I haven't.’

‘You don’t have to apologize. We were in the middle of a fight. Tensions and emotions were running high. Steve should have kept his mouth shut. It was unnecessary,’ said Sam, shooting Steve a dark look.

‘It was right of Steve to do,’ corrected Tony. ‘Because I treated you like shit on the ground. Because I didn’t respect your skills or your history. Because it never occurred to me that this could traumatize you all over again.’

‘Thank you, Tony. It was worse going to the Raft, getting treated like dirt, and not knowing what to expect,’ said Sam bluntly.

‘And I’m sorry for that, too. So despite what you might think, Steve was in the right to call me out,’ said Tony. He grinned at Steve’s look of astonishment. 

‘Who says a leopard can’t change their spots, eh, Stevie?’ teased Bucky.

‘I do believe we were going to watch the trailer,’ said Steve loftily.

Scott snickered. ‘OK, go ahead and change the subject. Besides, I am getting pretty sleepy. Shall we watch it and then comment after? It goes by pretty quick.’ 

Tony pulled up the trailer and they settled in to watch.

‘Holy shit,’ breathed Bucky after. ‘Did Luke say what I think he said?’

‘Did you see Finn?’ asked Bruce.

‘And Rey! Did you see Rey practicing with the lightsaber?’ asked Jane excitedly.

‘Our favourite asshole is back! Kylo Ren doesn’t look at all sorry,’ pointed out Scott.

‘And Poe and BB-8!’ said Wanda with a grin.

‘There is so much there. Do you want to watch it again?’ asked Steve.

‘I would like to,’ said Thor. ‘I was caught up in the action scenes.’

‘OK, let’s watch it one more time,’ said Tony with a smile of his own.

‘I’m commenting along this time. OK, so there’s Rey, and she’s learning the Force, right?’ asked Bucky.

‘From what we know so far, yes,’ answered Sam. ‘Luke is teaching her.’

‘So there’s light and darkness and balance in the Force,’ mused Bruce.

‘I think that was Leia. I’m going to be sobbing in the movie theater,’ said Scott with a wry smile.

‘Carrie died, right? So…. that’s the last Star Wars movie we’ll see her in,’ said Tony, sighing.

‘Wait… the actress who played Leia died?’ asked Bucky, his voice rising in agitation.

‘Yeah. It was totally unexpected… and then, her mom died shortly after. I think she died of a broken heart. They were so close,’ said Scott.

‘Ah, geez,’ said Bucky softly, his eyes wide. ‘I really loved seeing her as Leia. They aren’t going to do a digital thing, are they?’

‘No. So I guess we’ll see how it ends for her in the eighth movie,’ said Sam.

‘I’m bummed out,’ admitted Steve. 

‘I cried,’ said Clint. ‘Not going to lie, and I'm not ashamed about it. Carrie understood mental illness and she lived life on her terms. She was amazing.’

‘I cried, too,’ said Sam. ‘Not ashamed either. She was amazing and now she’s gone.’

Bucky sighed and watched as Rey went through some exercises with the lightsaber gleaming in the half-light. ‘That’s Rey and Luke, right?’

‘We think so,’ said Sam, cautiously. ‘Looks like someone joined them. Maybe Chewie?’

‘Maybe. Not sure. Couldn’t tell,’ put in Natasha.

‘This is coming out around Christmastime?’ asked Bruce. ‘Happy Christmas to me, then!’

‘Exactly. A Christmas present to ourselves… watching the new Star Wars movie,’ agreed Thor.

‘So much action!’ grumbled Clint. ‘Ships and Poe and BB-8 running and Finn and explosions!’

‘There’s the Millennium Falcon!’ cried Wanda, pointing.

‘Yes, there she is! And there’s Kylo with his horrible lightsaber,’ said Natasha, frowning.

‘What is burning? Is that the Jedi school? I thought that was in the past,’ said Steve, puzzled.

‘Maybe it’s another place? That place that Luke was looking for, where the first Jedi were,’ guessed Bucky.

‘Maybe. And those figures… who were they?’ asked Thor.

‘Not sure. I guess we’ll find out,’ said Sam. ‘Now we’re all on the same page.’

‘What does Luke mean by that? ‘It’s time for the Jedi to end’... What is he saying?’ wondered Steve.

‘Maybe he’s decided Skywalkers have done more than enough, thank you very much,’ put in Jane tartly.

‘Well, the title _is_ ‘The Last Jedi,’ so he means something by it,’ said Clint.

Bucky leaned against Steve and yawned. ‘That was awesome. All of it. The movie watching, the talking… even the hard stuff…. this was a great idea, Stevie.’

Steve kissed Bucky gently and smiled. ‘I’m glad you enjoyed yourself. Now we’re caught up on all the Star Wars stuff. December is going to be awesome!’

‘It turned out to be a good idea after all,’ said Bruce, stretching and swallowing a yawn. ‘I think I’m going to sleep in tomorrow. I’ll go to bed and dream about Jedi, I’m sure.’

‘I’m right behind you,’ said Natasha. ‘Bed and sleeping in and then I guess I’ll see.’

‘Don’t forget, when Jane comes back from her conference and has some time, we’re going to test that podracer,’ reminded Tony.

‘I can’t miss that!’ exclaimed Scott. ‘I’ll move stuff around and be back in time for it.’

‘I’ve already made arrangements with Heimdall. He is ready when I am,’ said Thor.

‘OK. So podracing and then we wait for the movie in December,’ said Bucky. ‘I guess I can live with that timeline.’

‘I have to build a second podracer for it to be actually racing,’ said Tony dryly. ‘But we can at least test this one out and tweak it.’

‘And maybe break it, given Steve’s excellent driving,’ teased Bucky.

‘Hey! I can drive,’ said Steve.

‘Yeah. A motorcycle. Must I remind you of the great Pasture Incident?’ asked Bucky.

‘Nope,’ said Steve, crossing his arms across his chest. ‘We promised never to talk about the great Pasture Incident.’

‘Huh. Must have been the deep freeze or something,’ said Bucky, looking as innocent as possible.

‘As intriguing as that all sounds, we should get to bed and then meet up to see how this podracer works,’ suggested Sam.

Everyone grumbled but headed off to bed.

‘Geez, Buck.... how can I trust you again when you forgot you’d never talk about that event,’ complained Steve as they walked to their quarters.

‘Probably because my ass is still sore from bouncing all over when you drove over those cow patties,’ retorted Bucky. 

**

Thor gathered everyone around him, making sure to stand next to the podracer. He called for Heimdall to bring them to the barren planet where they could test the vehicle.

‘Close your eyes if you must,’ suggested Jane. ‘It’s a little disconcerting the first time.’

No one had a chance to say anything before Heimdall brought them all to a planet that echoed Tatooine.

‘Wow. Are you sure Heimdall didn’t see any of the movies? Because this is scarily accurate,’ said Tony. He loped over to the podracer to make sure the journey hadn’t interfered with its instruments.

‘He didn’t,’ said Thor, amusement in his voice. ‘But I asked him to find me a planet that would be arid and open and have no threats, and this is what he found.’

‘Who wants to go first?’ asked Tony. ‘Everyone gets a fair shot at this.’

‘Don’t you want to?’ asked Steve.

‘Nah. I’ll go last. I want to do some readings as each of you fly this thing. It’ll give me a good idea of what you can handle for any future vehicles,’ answered Tony.

‘Fair enough. Who’d like to go first?’ asked Steve.

Bucky waved his hand wildly in the air. ‘Me! Choose me!’

Steve sighed. ‘OK, Buck. Since you volunteered first, you can go first.’

Tony handed Bucky a pair of goggles. ‘OK, so these goggles can communicate with me. Don’t hesitate to talk with me if you need to. This is supposed to be fun, remember.’

Bucky took the goggles and put them on. ‘OK. I’m ready.’

‘Go on, get in the pod,’ said Tony. He waited until Bucky was settled in and then leaned over to point out the features as he talked. ‘There’s the start-up button. There’s the steering yoke. Pedals are like a car. Left one is to stop, right one is to accelerate. Accelerate slowly, because I built some speed into this.’

‘Speed is my middle name,’ said Bucky. 

‘Your middle name is jerk,’ said Steve with a smirk. 

Bucky casually flipped Steve the bird while he buckled himself into the harness under Tony’s guidance.

‘Finally, your official helmet,’ said Tony, handing Bucky a helmet.

Bucky looked at the Rebellion insignia and crowed with delight. He put it on and adjusted his goggles.

‘You look just like Anakin did,’ said Wanda, a smile lighting up her face. ‘Let me take your photo.’

Bucky posed with a big smile as Wanda took a photo of him.

‘OK, everyone else, step back. The engine isn’t going to flare out or anything, but I don’t want to take any chances,’ said Tony. ‘Let’s give Red Herring a chance to mess up without worrying if he takes one of us out while doing so.’

‘Ha ha,’ called out Bucky. ‘Can I start it up?’

‘Whenever you’re ready,’ said Tony, after checking everyone else’s distance from the podracer.

Bucky pushed the start button and the engines roared to life. ‘Hey, look at that! It’s like I’m in a ‘Star Wars’ movie or something.’

‘Ignore him. He was dropped on his head as a baby,’ muttered Steve, a smile curling around the edges of his mouth.

‘All right. Go for it!’ yelled Tony, looking down at the tablet he’d pulled out from inside his jacket.

‘Wait, wait! Doesn’t every dashing driver get a smooch from their sweetie?’ yelled Bucky.

‘Oh for… Buck!’ exclaimed Steve, blushing pink.

‘Quit acting shy! Get over here and plant one on me!’ said Bucky.

Steve sighed and walked over to Bucky. ‘You are such a jerk.’

‘But you love me. Punk,’ teased Bucky, reaching up to put his hand on Steve’s neck.

‘Yeah. I love you. Pucker up, Buck,’ said Steve. He bent over and kissed Bucky, intending to keep it relatively chaste.

Bucky opened his mouth and pulled Steve closer, daring him to kiss him back.

Steve shifted and kissed Bucky with as much intensity as Bucky was giving him. 

‘Hey! You two! Stop it before you give each other a heart attack or something. You’re too old for that!’ called Scott, while Clint heckled them with hoots and catcalls.

Steve drew back and touched Bucky’s face. ‘You ready to give this a whirl?’

‘Sure am. I’ll see you in a little bit. I’m gonna give this a run for its money,’ said Bucky with a laugh.

Steve joined the rest of the group, cheering while Bucky stepped on the accelerator and the podracer roared away. They could hear Bucky’s yells of delight over the sound of the engine, and crowded around Tony to watch Bucky’s progress on the screen.

‘You know,’ said Scott, ‘Things have been difficult, but lately it’s been evening out, I think. Those movie nights must have done the trick.’

‘It helped a lot,’ murmured Natasha. She leaned in and laughed. ‘Bucky better watch his right side. He’s gonna clip one of those rock formations.’

‘He’ll keep an eye on it,’ said Sam. ‘And I agree. It did help a lot. I’m ready to move on.’

‘Ready enough to take up the shield?’ asked Steve, smiling at Sam.

‘Yeah. I think so. Stark, you better clear your calendar. We got some work to do,’ warned Sam.

Tony laughed. ‘I was hoping you’d say that. Oh, look, that needs a little work. I have to tweak the stability bar. He’s compensating just fine, though.’ Tony tapped the tablet and typed out some notes.

‘This was more fun than being in the lab this morning,’ said Bruce.

‘I have to agree. It’ll be fun to take a turn in the podracer. I can pretend I’m one of the Skywalkers,’ said Jane.

Thor smiled. ‘I’m glad we’re all together. This was well worth the time and badgering Heimdall.’

‘Poor Heimdall,’ said Jane, smiling up at Thor. ‘He suffers so much.’

‘I think our little Red Wing is headed back our way,’ said Tony, looking up from his tablet. 

Sam rolled his eyes and looked over the landscape.

‘There he is,’ said Clint, pointing at a small dust cloud on the horizon that was steadily increasing in size as it came closer.

Bucky swooped down upon them with a flourish. He stopped a safe distance away, the engines idling smoothly. ‘I think the stability thingamajig needs some work, Stark,’ he yelled.

‘Yeah, I think you’re right. Is it still driveable?’ asked Tony.

‘It’s not a big deal. Might want to tighten it a little bit, though. It has a tendency to dip when you least expect it,’ reported Bucky.

‘OK. Hold on. Let me take a look at it. Can you power it down?’ asked Tony.

Bucky turned off the pod racer and then hopped out. ‘That was amazing! Even better than the Cyclone!’

‘Wait until Tony’s made a couple more of them,’ said Steve. ‘Then we’ll have some fun.’

‘It’ll be just like Super Mario Brothers,’ sighed Clint happily.

Natasha squinted at him. ‘He better not create any blue shells or there’s going to be hell to pay.’

Scott laughed and said, ‘Well, how was it piloting that thing?’

‘It was incredible. You’re going to love it. I had the ‘Star Wars’ theme going through my head,’ said Bucky.

‘Of course you did. That’s expected,’ said Scott.

‘We’re all going to have one song or another going through our heads, I’m sure,’ agreed Bruce.

Steve just looked at Bucky, taking in his happiness and the easy way he now related to everyone. He looked at Tony, happy that they had managed to talk about the things that hurt the most. He looked at his friends, seeing how comfortable they were with each other, how the old wariness and unsurety was gone.

Steve’s thoughts were interrupted by Bucky shoving the helmet into his hands. ‘Hey, punk, you sleeping or what?’ teased Bucky.

Steve regarded Bucky and grinned, laughter slipping free with ease. ‘Nah. Just… happy, that’s all.’ He looked at everyone who looked back at him, their faces reflecting the same happiness. 

‘For the first time in a long time… I’m happy,’ whispered Steve, overwhelmed. Bucky took his hand and held it tight. Steve felt like he’d been anchored steady and deep.

‘That’s great, Steve,’ said Scott. ‘May the Force be with you, then. Always.’

Steve nodded. ‘Thanks, Scott. May the Force be with all of us. You’re the best friends a fella could ask for.’

Steve said nothing more as Bucky squeezed his hand and everyone voiced their agreement. It was everything Steve had hoped for when he’d first proposed watching the ‘Star Wars’ saga. He’d hoped to resolve the hurts, to rekindle friendships, and to help Bucky find his place with everyone. 

It felt like the last scene of a movie, his friends around him and the sun overhead. The soaring in his heart felt like finally, with Bucky by his side, they had come home.


End file.
